The Face of Love
by Fbiloveemandhotch
Summary: Sometimes divorce seems like the only choice, some times there are no words that can fix it all. But what happens when is not the absence of love what separated them. Because when you truly love someone there isn't anything you wouldn't do to show your love for that person even if it means sacrificing everything you have. **Warning Character Death**
1. Chapter ONE

_**I do not own Criminal Minds or the characters. I merely write fictional scenarios between the characters. I do, however, own some of the characters created to give life to this story. In this particular story, Violet is a product of my imagination.**_

 _ **Summary: Emily and Hotch are divorced and have a beautiful five-year-old daughter. How do you get by in life when you love someone so much it physically hurts? He never thought he would divorce the love of his life, or how can he keeps living when his life is falling apart in front of his eyes.**_

 _ **The Face of Love: Chapter One**_

" _Some people believe holding on and hanging in there are signs of great strength. However, there are times when it takes much more strength to know when to let go and then do it."_

― _Ann Landers_

The soft breeze caressed his skin as he ran across the park to get the ball; he could feel his cheeks flush from happiness and maybe even exhaustion. They had been playing at the park for a few hours now, but these moments were an absolute treasure to him. No matter how many hours he spent with her, he could never get tired. Her sweet laughter and her smile were his world. He grabbed the ball and turned around to face the little girl running toward him. A smile grew on his face, his dimples deeply showing, and the light in his eyes reflecting endless love. Her soft curls flew around her porcelain skin as she ran toward him, and then those eyes, the ones that had captivated him so long ago focused on him like a spark. Those beautiful dark eyes he could never say _NO_ to, not those of the little girl in front of him, nor her mother.

"Daddy, daddy, I won again," The little girl sang as she bounced happily around him. He reached to pick her up and swing her around, while laughing and tickling her stomach as her merry laughter filled the air.

"I see that, sweetheart, but you always win. You know why? Because you are daddy's princess." He smiled as he pressed a soft kiss on the little girl's nose.

"Can we play a little bit longer?" The little girl asked as she bit her lip and pouted. She was so much like Emily in so many ways. He resisted the urge to laugh at how identical they were sometimes.

"Not now, sweetie, we have to go, mommy is waiting."

Violet pouted sadly but then a tiny smile reached her face. The five-year-old ran toward the car as soon as her dad set her on the ground. Hotch followed her closely, a lingering feeling of nostalgia and sadness on his face.

"Be careful Violet, you've got to wait for Daddy before you cross the street." He called to the little girl chasing after her.

"I know, I know, I'm a big girl." The five-year-old responded turning around and placing her hand on her hips with a look that could only be described as pure defiance. This time he was unable to stop himself and smirked, shaking his head as he approached his daughter and held her hand.

Together they crossed the street toward his SUV; he carefully placed the soccer ball and lunch bag they had taken to the park in his trunk and proceeded to help Violet into her car seat. His daughter smiled, and he couldn't help but place a kiss on her forehead. He closed the door and walked over to the driver's side of his truck.

"Daddy, when is Jack's soccer game?" The five-year-old asked as he pulled away from the parking lot across the street from the park.

"Next week, baby." He replied as he focused on the road.

"Can I come and watch him play again?" She asked, already excited.

"I'll ask mommy, okay? I'm sure Jack would love to have you there." He responded with a small smile.

This information didn't seem enough for the little girl; he watched her through the rear-view mirror, as a sad face covered her sweet, innocent face. He felt his stomach drop…he wished he could make her happy always and give her everything she wanted, but sometimes that was impossible.

A little while later, he pulled up in the driveway in front of the two-story house, the place he once called his own. He parked and watched as Violet unlocked her seat belt and saw her face light up a bit. Hotch got out to help his daughter down from the truck and to grab her weekend bag. Violet ran to the front door smiling, and her little fingers reached for the doorbell as she rang it impatiently.

A few seconds later, the door swung open and his daughter's face lit up completely as she threw herself into her mother's waiting arms.

"Mommy, mommy, we're here!" Violet said as her mother picked her up and held her tightly.

"Hi, baby, I missed you so much." Emily said and kissed the little girl's face and smiled happily since she felt incomplete without her child nearby. She softly placed Violet down in the foyer watching her fly up the stairs excitedly. Emily smiled softly and turned to look at the man who once held her heart, and maybe he still did.

"Hey, sorry if we are a little late…we got distracted playing soccer, and I didn't even realize what time it was." Hotch apologized looking at the woman who would always be the love of his life.

"It's okay, no problem, I understand. Hey, where is Jack?" She asked looking back at his truck hoping to see the little boy she still loved, even if it was just for a few minutes.

"Haley picked him up earlier at the park, she wanted to go see her parents before the weekend was over." He explained nervously…it had been a while since the brunette had that effect on him.

"I hope he had fun, give him a kiss for me next time he comes by." Emily said genuinely because Jack would always be a second child to her, even if he wasn't her biological son.

"Of course, I'm sure we can arrange plans so you guys can hang out soon." Hotch said knowing full well Emily loved Jack so much since she had helped him raise his son for at least five years.

"That would be wonderful, I really miss him." She said with a small hint of sadness in her voice.

"We'll figure something out." He repeated, then gazed at the driveway where his truck was parked. He had never felt like this before when he was near her; this emptiness and sadness.

"Hey, listen, may I talk to you for a minute?" He asked, looking back at her nervously staring at those beautiful dark eyes that would always make his stomach jump, those same gorgeous eyes Violet had inherited.

"Sure, come in." Emily replied, moving out of the foyer and letting him into the house.

He followed her inside into the living room, watching as his five-year-old daughter came running down the stairs with a coloring book and a fistful of crayons in her other hand. He smiled and sat down watching his ex-wife help Violet onto a cushion near the coffee table as the little girl settled to color near her parents. Watching Emily nearly broke his heart again, he would never understand what made her decide to divorce him.

Hotch always thought their marriage was nearly perfect and that they had everything they both wanted. But apparently not because less than six months ago, Emily asked him for a divorce. He was aghast; he never would have thought she would want to divorce him. Sure, they had issues, what marriage didn't, but he didn't think their relationship was so bad it had made her want to divorce him. Even until today, he still wasn't sure why she had asked for a divorce, even with their rough patch.

Emily had been forced to leave the BAU and take over the Counter Terrorism Unit, it wasn't exactly what the couple wanted but it was for the best. After Strauss had left the Bureau, it left a mess of things for Hotch to deal with as the current Section Chief. Also, for Matt Cruz who was now the Deputy Director of the FBI, and it was his suggestion that Emily leave the BAU and join a different team. Given that Hotch and Emily's relationship had been a secret to the Bureau, the couple couldn't exactly object to this decision. It was either their career or their relationship and Emily would never forgive herself if Hotch lost everything had ever worked for and loved.

Emily left the team and joined the Counter Terrorism Unit; doing that, she would be able to go home everyday at a decent time and be with her children. Although Hotch would have liked for her to just stop working altogether, he respected her decision because she loved working for the FBI. The thing with her going to the Counter Terrorism Unit was that she would be more directly working all the time with Matt Cruz. Hotch wasn't exactly a fan of Cruz since the Deputy didn't exactly have the best of the reputations when it came to women. He had watched him look at his subordinates in a way Hotch would never allow himself to do…well, maybe he had with Emily, but in his defense, he had subsequently married her.

However, JJ often told Hotch he was being paranoid, that Cruz was such a good guy. He suspected the blonde had a crush on Cruz to begin with, but it really didn't help that Emily started spending a lot of time around Cruz, and no matter how many times she told her husband there was nothing going on with them, he couldn't stop himself from feeling tremendous jealousy. In the end, it was Dave who convinced him there wasn't anything going on with his wife and the current Deputy Director, and that if he didn't stop acting like a fool he was going to screw everything up.

Things only got worse as Emily changed in a span of a few weeks. She started not acting like herself and acting differently like something was bugging her. Hotch knew she was hiding something, especially when she started losing weight, the dark circles under her eyes were evident, she was always jumpy and paranoid, and they started fighting almost daily. In the end, it was Emily who asked for a divorce; she stated there was too much going on, and she simply couldn't deal with it anymore. As much as it pained him, Hotch agreed to the divorce, but there wasn't a day since that sad night six months ago that he didn't miss her. He knew he would never stop loving her.

"So, what's going on?" Emily asked, avoiding eye contact with him, and it pained him to see them acting like two complete strangers.

"Jack's soccer team is playing again; Dave and I have been coaching them, and they are actually doing pretty well." He stated as he watched a small smile dance across his ex-wife's lips.

"I'm really happy, Jack must be very excited." Emily replied, she knew how much soccer meant to the little boy.

"Anyway..." Hotch continued as his eyes landed on his daughter who was concentrated on her coloring book, "the next game is this Saturday…I know it's your weekend to have Violet, but I was wondering if she could come for the game, at least, it will really mean a lot to Jack if she was there."

"I understand if you already have plans with her, but…" He started, but she cut him off almost immediately.

"No, it's okay, you can take her, it's fine with me." Emily responded with a small smile, despite everything going on, she knew he was a wonderful father; she would never get tired of saying that.

"Are you sure? I don't want to impose on your time with her."

"It's okay, Aaron, I'm sure she would love to go, and Jack will really love for her to be there, too." It really pained her to see her children separated. Even if Jack wasn't her real son, he had loved and protected Violet since she was born. At ten years old, Jack would do anything for his little sister, and Emily couldn't be happier to have Jack in her daughter's life.

"Thank you so much, Emily, this really means a lot." Hotch said, truly grateful, even if they weren't together any longer, he and Emily would always work together giving their children the very best they could. Hotch was about to thank her and leave, but he watched her carefully realizing his ex-wife looked more and more withdrawn with each passing day he saw her.

"Are you okay?" He asked without being able to stop himself. Emily looked more than exhausted and even thinner than usual. She had always been slim even after having their daughter, but now, she was really bordering on being underweight. The bags under her eyes were darker than before and prominent, and he could see that she was biting her fingernails again. That really worried him, even if they weren't together he would always care for her.

"Me?" She asked, surprised, and quickly brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "Yeah, I'm fine." She quickly said, silently praying he hadn't noticed her odd behavior.

But, her micro expressions were so familiar to him, he hadn't missed the way she clasped her hands nervously, or the way her eyes looked in another direction like she did when she was trying to avoid something.

"Emily, you know that no matter what happened in the past, I will always be here for you, you know that, right?" HHe asked, making direct eye contact with her.

"Yeah, I know, I'm okay." She responded with a small smile that barely touched her lips.

"Emily..."

"I am fine, Aaron, really…I haven't been sleeping well, it's nothing."

He nodded, though not fully convinced, because he also knew Emily had been acting differently for a while now. Perhaps, even before they got divorced, he wondered if there really was something between Cruz and her. It wasn't that he didn't trust her, it was just that she wasn't herself, it wasn't the Emily he had fallen in love with.

"Okay, I have to go, but just know that if you ever need anything, I'm here." He stated and leaned down to kiss his daughter goodbye promising her that he would be there next weekend to take her to Jack's game.

Then he was gone, walking toward his car as his beautiful daughter and ex-wife disappeared behind the door. He drove away feeling empty and lost. Hotch had never stopped loving Emily; even if she didn't love him anymore, he would never be able to stop loving her as much as he did. He would do anything possible for him to do to get her back, to win her forgiveness, but even he knew that Emily's decision had been final.

Inside the house, Emily asked Violet to put her books and crayons away and to wash her hands for dinner. Violet happily bounced up the stairs to get ready for dinner, especially since mommy had promised she would play tea party once dinner was finished, and her school stuff was prepared for next day.

As the little girl disappeared into the second floor of the house, Emily watched as her ex- husband's truck vanished down the street. Her eyes filled with tears, and she squeezed her eyes closed because this situation hurt too much, the pain was so unbearable. The ringing of her cellphone almost gave her a heart attack. She looked at the caller ID and couldn't stop herself from shaking her head as she closed her eyes again answering the call.

"Hello." She answered, acting as normally as she could hoping her voice didn't betray as badly as she felt.

"Hello, Beautiful." The man who caused nightmares in her dreams said in a cold voice.

"What do you want?" She asked bitterly, unable to control herself.

"Relax, Love, I'm just checking on you...it looks like Agent Hotchner is still in the picture, doesn't it; that wasn't our agreement." He said coldly.

"He is her father, I can't deny him the right to see her." She barked back.

"Well, it seems as if he was there for more than just a fatherly visit. Now, you don't want to anger me again, do you, Love?" He asked. Emily felt like she wanted to throw up.

"I did what you asked." She replied, biting her lip cursing him in her mind.

"Not quite, but soon, Love, soon." He hung up, and Emily wished she could throw her phone across the wall.

She closed her eyes and attempted to calm herself down, but tears clung to her eyelashes. She wanted this nightmare to end, but he wasn't about to let her off that easily.

"Mommy, come on...come help me with this." Violet called from upstairs.

"I'm coming, baby." She said, wiping her eyes and heading upstairs to help her daughter. She stepped inside the bathroom and saw that Violet had the sink covered in bubbles and her hands and dress covered with soap, as well.

"Vi, what did you do?" She couldn't stop herself from smirking at her daughter.

"I was washing my hands, mommy." Violet replied innocently as she played with the bubbles in the sink.

"Oh, Violet, now you need a shower, honey." Emily said as she walked in and turned off the faucet, laughing as her daughter blew bubbles from her hand to Emily's face. No matter what she had to do, she would always protect her family. She would do anything it took to protect Violet, Jack and Aaron even if she meant she would lose her own life.

 _ **True love is selfless. It is prepared to sacrifice. Sadhu Vaswani**_


	2. Chapter TWO

**The Face of Love: Chapter Two**

" _Nothing makes us so lonely as our secrets."- Paul Tournier_

Every month, the Federal Bureau of Investigations had meetings with all its departments to discuss procedure and things that could be improved. Each department shared important information with everyone, and they shared the outcome of their investigations as well as new ideas to implement the security and success of the FBI. It wasn't necessarily anything everyone looked forward to it, because once you made it through the chain of command, there was a lot of politics, something that Hotch wasn't necessarily a fan of. However, his presence at the meeting was mandatory as the current Section Chief of the Behavioral Analysis Unit, but so was every other department Section Chiefs.

He turned and gazed around the big table noting that the Victims Services Unit Chief was there; Hotch had the opportunity to work with Agent Koester a few times. The Intelligence Crime Unit Section Chief was also there, as well at the Cyber Crimes Division One, pretty much every single Section Chief was at that meeting, everyone except Emily, where in the hell was Emily?!

Emily was the current Counter Terrorism Division Section Chief, and she was usually one of the first ones to report to these meetings on a regular basis. His gaze remained on the door hoping to see her bursting through them at any second…she was probably just running late after she dropped Violet off at pre-school. However, minutes passed, and Emily never came through those doors. Cruz was already there, as well as James Krammer current Director of the FBI.

The meeting started and Hotch grew more impatient looking at his watch; it wasn't like Emily to show up late, at the very least, she would let someone know she would be late. Maybe she had already spoken to Cruz about running late, but he only grew more concerned when Cruz directly stared at him and then at his watch. The message was loud and clear…Cruz had no idea where Emily was, and Hotch simply shrugged looking back at the doors one more time. He considered texting her, even if they were divorced, he felt he had the right to still worry about her well-being.

As the director spoke about procedure and other regulations, Hotch discreetly pulled out his cellphone and quickly typed a message… **"Are you okay? The meeting has already started."** However, he had barely finished typing the message when the door opened and Emily walked in, she looked flushed and her eyes were red, either she had been crying, or she was about to burst into tears.

"I am really sorry, something came up..." She said looking at the director and taking a seat next to Cruz. Luckily, Emily already had a stellar reputation at the FBI, she was well- appreciated due to her extensive knowledge about terrorists and linguistics.

"It's okay, are you alright?' The Director asked, well-aware her face wasn't the same one as always.

"Yeah, I'm okay, I'm really sorry…it won't happen again." She apologized and turned to look at Cruz who mouthed something to her. Emily quickly dismissed him and focused her attention on the Director. Hotch's glance remained on Cruz; something clearly was going on and either Cruz knew about it, or he suspected something was wrong with Emily, as well. Hotch's attention went back to his cellphone as he deleted the message he started to send earlier only to quickly replace it with " **Are you sure you are okay? I've been worried about you, we all have."**

Emily's phone buzzed, and she was surprised to see a text from Hotch. She looked up from her phone and the two of them made eye contact for a second before her gaze dropped again to her phone. **"I am fine, Aaron, please stop worrying about me."** Hotch read the message and decided to let it go for now. He was well-aware something was going on, but he also knew Emily and he knew that maybe it was for the best to let it go.

Of course, everything would have been fine if Emily hadn't grown more and more distracted as the meeting continued. Now, Cruz was addressing the Chiefs, asking relative questions about protocol and the cases they had worked. It wasn't until he directly asked Emily a question that both he and Cruz realized maybe Emily wasn't as fine as she claimed to be. It seemed like she was lost in her thoughts, and now, everyone was looking at her making Hotch more worried.

"Prentiss…" Cruz repeated watching her carefully; he had a good idea why she was behaving like she was, but he couldn't say anything…not just yet. "Emily!" He called a little louder, and she finally snapped out of her thoughts. "I'm sorry, Cruz." She said, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. Cruz was really worried, and he knew they needed to talk soon.

"I was just briefing them on the new strategies your division has taken to prevent any further terrorist acts that can put the country at risk." He stated, trying to cover for her.

"Right, we're working on creating programs to raise public awareness of indicators of terrorism and terrorism-related crime and to emphasize the importance of reporting suspicious activity to the proper state and local law enforcement authorities." Emily went on with everyone listening to her with rapt attention. Hotch didn't fail to notice her behavior, she constantly stared at her fingernails, maybe realizing herself that there wasn't much left to chew on, he also didn't miss the way her eyes were focused on the people at the table, but she was really miles away. Hotch knew that look very well, he had seen that look many times; it was her "I am fine" look when he knew very well something was wrong.

Soon the meeting came to an end, Cruz was talking to the Director about some signatures he needed to approve something. Emily left the conference room as soon as she was able to, Hotch wanted to go after her but the director who was now finishing speaking to Cruz stopped him. His conversation with the Director wasn't any longer than the one Cruz had with him, it was just to touch base about the latest cases the BAU had worked and how Morgan was doing as the new Unit Chief. They exchanged a few words and finally Hotch was able to leave the office, as well.

He made his way to the elevators and before he could stop himself, he pushed the button that took him to the eleventh floor where Emily's office was located. When he arrived at her office, her assistant wasn't at the reception desk as she usually was; Hotch was about to knock on her office door when he realized there was someone already there talking with Emily since he could hear them arguing.

"What do you want me to say, Matt, I told you I am fine...I haven't slept well, and I've been stressed with the amount of work I have, that's all." She stated in an annoyed tone.

"Emily, you can't hide anything from me, this isn't something you can do on your own and you know that?" Cruz snapped angrily.

"Right, because it matters so much to you, right? Just like it did eight years ago!" She barked back…Hotch could hear the anger in her voice.

"Emily, please...I care about you, and I always will...you know that." This time his voice was different, there was a lingering sound of sadness and maybe regret.

"Then, just let it go, Matt, please." She begged.

"I'm not going to do that, Emily, I will do whatever it takes to help you...no matter what." Cruz said, and then the door opened, and he was face to face with Hotch. He could tell Cruz was surprised to see him there…maybe even uncomfortable, and he certainly couldn't fail to see the glare Hotch sent his way.

"Agent Hotchner, what are you doing here?" Cruz asked, for lack of any words.

"I need to speak to Emily…"

Cruz was about to say that Emily was no longer his concern but stopped himself knowing this would only make things worse for her during what was going on. He nodded and left Emily's office against his will. He would never admit it out loud, but he would never be able to let go of the fact that Emily loved Hotch deeply and that made him crazy jealous. Once, a long time ago, Emily had been his, he had her heart and soul, but now, there were only memories; even then he knew she had never loved anyone the way she loved Hotchner.

"What was all that about?" Hotch asked as he stepped into his ex-wife's office.

Emily almost jumped when she saw Hotch standing in front of her, she had no idea how much he had heard, but she was hoping it wasn't everything.

"What was what about?" She asked as she re-arranged some files in front of her desk.

"Emily, are you seeing him?" Hotch asked, he knew he had no right, but he had to know.

"Aaron, please don't start with this right now." She begged, closing her eyes.

"I just want the truth Emily, at least, I deserve that after everything that's happened." His eyes were burning into hers, and he couldn't help himself.

"I told you before and I am telling you now, what happened with Matt and me in the past has nothing to do with us now." She said, walking toward her window.

"You asked for a divorce just a few months after he came back to work for the FBI, how do you expect me not to think something is going on." He crossed his arms in a defying way.

"Aaron, we got divorced because you and I had issues...this has nothing to do with him."

"Those issues started when he came back here..."

"Aaron, I have always been honest with you, I told you everything about him and me that happened before you and I met." Her eyes were glistening, and he could see sadness and pain on her beautiful face.

"I'm not asking about your past, I don't care about that...but I am concerned about you. If he has something on you, you will tell me, right?" He asked almost in a pleading tone.

"Aaron, please, I have a lot to do, and I have to meet the Director in half an hour…don't do this at work I am begging you." She pleaded, her eyes glancing out the curtains of her office where she saw Cruz staring at her. She couldn't stop fidgeting her hands. Hotch's expert eyes followed her own eyes, and he realized something he had not seen before on her behavior: _fear._

"Did he hurt you? Is he threatening you?" He asked, suddenly worried and angered.

"What? No, of course not..." she said surprised

"Emily, something is going on, and Cruz has something to do with it…I don't care what your decision is, even if you want to be with him, I respect that, but if he ever lays a hand on you, or if I ever hear that he has hurt you in any way, I will kill him, Emily...mark my words, I will kill him." He warned, staring out the window and vowing to her.

She looked at him for a few seconds, staring into those hazel eyes, the ones she had fallen in love with. The ones that made her smile in ways no one else ever had. She breathed in his manly scent and for a second, she allowed herself to close her eyes and think about all those times he had made her feel so loved and so safe. There was nothing in this world he wouldn't do for her and she knew it…he truly would protect her with his life if it was necessary... her eyes filled with tears, and she stared at him almost unable to control herself, she still love him so much.

"Aaron..." That was all she was able to say before he approached her and grabbed her hand softly. He looked at her fingers and saw that she had chewed on her nails so badly some of her fingers had bled.

"You're biting your fingernails again." He stated, then his eyes focused on her again. Just for a minute, he saw how terrified she was and how truly vulnerable she looked.

"Please tell me what is bothering you, are you in danger?" He asked, but she just stared at him unable to utter a word.

"Em, if something is going on, you need to tell me; I will do anything within my abilities to keep you safe...I will give my own life to protect you." He closed the space between them and softly pulled her into his arms holding her close hoping that, for once, she would tell him what was wrong.

"I am okay Aaron, nothing is going on." She replied as she extracted herself from his embrace. No matter what happened and how scared she was she couldn't tell him, she couldn't…he would never forgive her.

"Emily..."

"I have to get going, Aaron...the Director is waiting for me, and you shouldn't be here anyway..." She said walking back toward her desk.

Hotch just nodded leaving her alone and walking away; he knew no matter how hard she tried to deny it, something was wrong. And, he was almost sure that Cruz was involved, and he knew, while she was denying everything, if Cruz ever hurt her in any way, he would end him.

Cruz had always been a delicate subject between them, and they usually avoided talking about him. When Emily and he first started seeing each other, they had run into Cruz at a function for the BAU. Back then; Cruz hadn't been transferred to the FBI just yet. Emily wasn't confortable at the function the entire time they were there, and Hotch had noticed her behavior had something to do with Cruz's presence.

He knew they had known each other for a while maybe back when Emily was a teen and her mother was posted overseas. He also knew they had crossed paths while she was working with the Interpol, he just didn't know the entire extent of their work history. It wasn't until they got home after the function that Emily finally opened up to him; their relationship was turning serious, and they didn't want to keep secrets from each other if they wanted things to really work between them.

Matt Cruz had, indeed, been a friend from her teenage years and their parents had a working relationship. Emily also confessed that Matt was the father of the baby she had aborted. Back then, they were both teens and neither of them were ready for a relationship, it wasn't until years later in the Interpol that he had made another move on Emily; however, she was more mature and had seen so much more in life. They dated for a time, while they both worked for the Interpol, and they thought since they had so much history in their past maybe it was worth trying again.

But Cruz was still as cocky and arrogant as ever; he never gave Emily the respect she deserved. It was Emily who ended the relationship not too long after her job with Interpol was finished, while she still did a few more missions for them. Her and Cruz's relationship ended completely, and she never really explained it in detail to him, but he had this feeling Cruz had treated Emily like shit during their relationship; he could really see it and just didn't understand why. What kind of man would treat her badly, for any man who was lucky enough to have Emily's attention would be a fool to hurt her. She was beautiful, smart, kind and passionate about her job. Hotch considered himself so lucky to have had her in his life even if it was only for a little while.

Emily said their relationship ended, and she decided to move back to the States where she started her life again. There, she joined the BAU, met Aaron and fell in love again. She assured him at that time that nothing could ever change the way she felt about him, not anyone, not even an old ex such as Cruz had been. He believed her because he could clearly see how much Cruz had hurt her, and Hotch vowed he would never treat her like any of her ex's. But even then, she still decided to divorce him, and he couldn't understand why.

Now, here they were years later, divorced, and Cruz was back on their lives; he could only hope the change of behavior had nothing to do with the current Deputy Director, or he wasn't in any way menacing her. Even if they weren't together any longer, he would do anything to protect her of that he was sure.

As he left her office, he ran into Matt Cruz again, both men exchanged evil glares. Hotch stopped and turned on his heels to look at his current boss.

"I'm only going to tell you this once...if you ever hurt her, if I ever hear of you laying a hand on her, I will end you..." Hotch barked angrily.

"Likewise, Hotchner..." Cruz stated in the same tone, not letting Hotch's stoic glare intimidate him for even a second.

" _ **There are no secrets that time does not reveal."- Jean Racine**_


	3. Chapter THREE

**The Face of Love: Chapter Three**

" _When we think of the past it's the beautiful things we pick out._

 _We want to believe it was all like that." - Margaret Atwood_

The following Saturday, Emily was at the playground in the park near their home playing with Violet. It was past noon, and she was attempting to enjoy a few hours with her daughter before Aaron picked her up. Since neither Emily nor Hotch wanted to have a custody battle and drag their child into the middle of their problems, they had an uncontested divorce. They had no problems with a property settlement…it wasn't like either of them had any valuables to divide. Aaron firmly believed Emily should keep the house since she had Violet's primary custody anyway. They basically had shared custody of their little girl, but it was agreed that Violet would live with Emily given that Hotch still traveled for work from time-to-time. Other than that, they shared weekends and holidays equally; in reality, he could see his daughter any time he wanted, Emily never really opposed that. He was very thankful for that unlike his divorce with Haley. Both of them had done everything they could to do what was best for the children and their happiness. Given that Violet adored her father, Emily would never oppose Aaron's desire to see her, if he arranged it beforehand, he could see his daughter every day if he so desired.

Now, Emily was sitting at a bench watching as Violet rode her bicycle; she smiled sadly as her daughter's laughter filled her ears. Violet was the most amazing thing that had ever happen to her, even before Aaron. She still remembered when she found out she was pregnant with her. She had been nervous and scared to tell him; since her relationship with Hotch was still supposed to be a secret. They had been dating for a year, but the team still didn't know about them, and she wasn't really sure how he would react, but to her surprise, he spun her around and kissed her so passionately, and she saw his eyes full of tears. She learned he had never been so happy in his life, except when he found out about Jack. At that very moment, he knelt before her and asked her to marry him and let him make her happy for their rest of their lives. She always thought he was her entire happiness, and if she was really honest with herself, he truly was.

Emily had some long-term boyfriends over the years, but nothing really too serious, she had only fallen in love once. Well, she wasn't really sure it was love anyways; she thought it maybe was infatuation and she was fascinated by his work and his personality. The first time Mateo Cruz managed to hurt her deeply she was only fifteen. They were both teenagers and they only had each other since their parents traveled all the time. Matt was funny and adventurous, and Emily wanted to so desperately fit in she started drinking with him and getting into trouble. So, when she realized she was pregnant and told him, he told her he wanted nothing to do with her or the baby…that was when her heart broke for the first time. She ended up having an abortion and moving back to the States hoping any memories of Matt would be erased.

She was strong and determined and was able to fulfill her dreams and graduate from Yale, and eventually, her scholarly-experience lead her to Interpol. Once again, she was reunited with Matt only things had changed...she was older and more experienced and more beautiful than ever, she had become and excellent agent and when she got hired by Interpol, Mateo Cruz once again realized he truly had feelings for the brunette. They worked together for a while and somehow their friendship remained so strong; Matt was still that sexy strong man she had once dated, only now he was tone of the leader's of Interpol, that being such a turn on for her. Power always had, there was something about a man in power that attracted her, and their dark past seemed to fascinate her.

Eventually, once her last mission with Interpol was completed, she realized she truly wasn't in love with Matt Cruz. In fact, as dangerous as her last mission had been, it only helped to open her eyes and make her realize she deserved so much better. As much as she hated to admit it, she had learned what true love really was in the arms of a criminal. Ironically, that was the truth, Emily's last mission had consisted of infiltrating into a terrorist's life to pose as his lover to gain information that could help with his capture. Little did she know that man would treat her better than any man ever had in her life including Matt Cruz.

"Mommy, look what I found!" Her daughter's voice brought her back from her thoughts. Emily turned to look at her five-year-old who was now in front of her holding a purple flower in her mom's face. Emily nearly had a heart attack when she realized that Violet was holding a freesia. Her heart skipped a beat, and she quickly gazed around the park her hand going to the Glock on her waist.

"Where did you get this, Violet?" She asked trying not to sound as panicked as she was. Emily searched every area of the park quickly...if he was there and had the audacity to come near her child, she would end him then and there.

"I found it, mommy..." Violet replied in a confused voice.

"Where? But where did you find it, Sweetie?" She asked desperately, she was clearly terrified, and didn't want to scare her daughter.

"Are you mad, mommy?" Violet asked, seeing her mother's reaction.

"No, baby, I'm not mad, just tell mommy where you found it." Emily said, kneeling in front of her daughter.

"Over there by the swings," and Violet pointed to the spot on the grass that was now empty. Emily scanned the area all around, but there was nothing that would indicate he, or anyone, had been there, not a footprint nor a car driving away. Could this be a coincidence? If so, it was a hell of a big coincidence.

"Vi, did anyone talk to you; did anyone give you that flower?" She asked looking at her daughter to make sure she was perfectly fine.

"No, mommy, I can't talk to strangers, remember?" The little girl responded scrunching up her nose. Emily almost laughed but she knew she needed to get the hell away from there and take Violet with her, so she quickly picked up Violet and walked toward the area of the park where Violet had left her bike. Putting the bike in her car, she proceeded to place Violet in her car seat driving away as fast as she could without causing a scene.

She closed her eyes for a brief second to calm herself down; she couldn't have a breakdown, not right then, not in front of Violet. Emily could still smell the freesia even when it was no longer in front of her. Memories filled her mind like it was yesterday.

" _She was sitting on the grass picking up the flowers and placing them in a basket, she not only loved the smell but also the color as she smiled softly, smelling the perfect flower in front of her."_

" _I always had a feeling lavender was your favorite color, Love." The man said as he sat in front of her._

" _Violet is my favorite color, but freesias are not exactly that color." She replied, smiling and looking into those blue eyes. Before she could say anything else, a little blonde boy came running towards them._

" _Lauren, look at the puppy...come look." She turned to look at the man in front of her, and he only smiled shrugging his shoulders, and she quickly followed the little boy around to the other side of the villa._

 _There it was, a small puppy; it was an Irish Wolfhound, and it was just the most beautiful thing she had ever seen._

" _He is so beautiful, isn't he, Lauren...?" Declan asked excitedly…even for his young age he was such a well-behaved boy._

" _Yeah, he is beautiful but I don't understand…" Her eyes landed on the man again as his blue eyes continued to stare at her with such passion and happiness._

" _You have made my son happier than I have ever seen him, I know I said "no" before to a dog, but I couldn't stop myself. I would do anything to make you happy...anything, Lauren."_

" _Ian, thank you, I don't know what to say." She responded as she watched the little boy play with the dog around her._

" _You don't have to say anything...I love you, Lauren, and I will show you that every day if you let me. You would make me the happiest man in the world if you would marry me...Declan needs a mother."_

" _I can't do that Ian, I can't raise your son so he can have your life?" she said shaking her head looking away from him._

 _She turned around staring at the freesias in front of them; she realized she could not do this anymore and wasn't really sure how much longer she would be able to live this lie. She felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her from behind, and she forced herself to smile._

 _He gave her one of the freesias she had been collecting while holding her close and kissing her neck._

" _You see this flower... you are just as perfect and beautiful if not more..." Doyle stated holding her against him._

 _Suddenly, they were interrupted by several cars and before she was able to say anything else men had Ian Doyle on the ground arresting him, and she barely realized what was happening as another agent pretended to arrest her and place her in another car. She watched her friends and colleague take Declan and his nanny and place them in another car. She had previously made an arrangement with her colleague that no matter what happened with the operation, they would get Declan and his nanny out and put him in protective custody. She closed her eyes as the car drove away and the villa disappeared in front of her…everything was finally over. Emily had been pretending for a while now to be Lauren Reynolds in order to capture Ian Doyle, but now that the mission was completed, she felt emptier than she ever had._

"Mommy, are you okay?" Violet asked looking at her mother with worried eyes.

"Yeah, sweetheart, I'm okay. Daddy will be home soon to pick you up."

"Mommy, if you're sad, I can stay with you instead." Violet said, smiling, and Emily fought the tears in her eyes.

"I'm not sad, baby, I promise...go with daddy, Jack will love having you at his game."

After Emily arrived home, she quickly searched the house to make certain there wasn't anything out of the ordinary. The entire ordeal had her paranoid, but she had decided if Doyle had the nerve to come near Violet, she would kill him; she would not allow him to come near her daughter ever again. She knew that no matter what she did, Doyle wanted to see her hurting after what she had done to have him arrested, and Emily could only hope he would keep his promise and never come near her family and only take her if he decided to do anything.

Until six months ago, Emily was happy with everything she ever had, she had the most amazing man on the world by her side and she loved her life. It wasn't until Ian Doyle broke out of prison that her life began to be a unravel and become a nightmare; she never would have guessed that the ghost of her past would come back to haunt her dreams or enter into her reality.

Emily was first introduced to this mission by Interpol, called JTF-12; a taskforce which consisted of a group of undercover profilers whose main focus was to arrest one of the all-time weapons terrorists, Ian Doyle. Since Interpol used infiltration as their main weapon into their subject's life, someone had to pose as an undercover agent to gain Doyle's trust, and perhaps develop information that could lead to his arrest and imprisonment. Soon, they realized Doyle was truly attracted to Emily, so they made her persona Lauren Reynolds, a former IRA interested in a weapon's deal. Of course, Doyle was fascinated by her beauty and intellect, but the thing about playing a lie is that soon you begin to believe your own lies. Of course, Emily was fully aware that Ian Doyle was a terrorist and a criminal, but undercover, she was able to see another side of him, a side she would have never guessed he had.

He was kind, compassionate, sweet and loving with her, and as much as Emily hated to admit it, no one had ever treated her as well as Ian did. Even though it was all based on a lie, she had never been with someone so sweet and caring, she had never felt so safe and secure. She knew eventually the time would come when she had to turn him in, but there was a thought inside her that often wondered what would happen if she helped Ian escape and really allowed her self to be happy for once in her life. Even as she contemplated this, she did know that she would have to come clean with Ian about who she really was; even if she told him the true the circumstances of their meeting and relationship, the chances of him killing her anyway were very good.

When the mission ended, Emily left the Interpol team and decided to go to Spain for a while to forget everything that happened. She couldn't come to terms with what she really wanted. Eventually, she flew back to the States in search of a new job and was in shock when she was eventually contacted by the BAU. Of course, she didn't think twice about taking that job and eight years later, here she was with an entire new set of unsolved problems she had decided so long ago to bury and never think about.

As Emily was getting Violet ready upstairs, she heard the doorbell ring. Violet started to dance around excitedly for the game and ran down the stairs happily as Emily chased after her.

"Violet, wait! Let mommy open the door." She said as she ran down the steps two or three at a time.

"But we know it's daddy." Violet stated looking at her with confused eyes.

"No, we don't, and I've told you several times you can't open the door by yourself." Emily reprimanded softly as she pushed the door open to see Hotch standing on the other side of the door.

"See, I told you it was daddy!" Violet reproached her.

"You still can't open the door, Vi, I don't care who it is." Emily told her looking at her daughter with exasperation and then at Hotch who was now looking at them with an amused grin.

"Mommy is being crazy again." She explained, and Hotch smirked for a second.

"Again?" He inquired, his brow furrowed looking at the brunette woman with a questioning look.

"She is embellishing...you know how she is." Emily lied and shrugged her shoulders.

"No, I'm not, you were being crazy at the park, too...we had to leave because you said I couldn't talk to strangers, remember?"

"Violet!" Emily warned.

"You were talking to strangers?" Hotch focused on Violet for a second having the same feelings his ex did when it came to his kids talking to people they didn't know.

"No, I wasn't, but mommy thought I did, so we had to leave the park." Violet explained rolling her eyes. Hotch almost chuckled at the identical behavior Violet could have just like her mother.

"Violet, why don't you go get your stuff so daddy doesn't have to wait." Emily ushered her daughter toward the stairs; she then turned to look at her ex with an apologetic look.

"Do I want to know what that was about?" He inquired, and Emily could hear the seriousness of his voice.

"It's nothing, Aaron, you know very well with the work we do, we tend to be a little overprotective of our kids." She quickly assured him. He glanced at her, but he couldn't really tell whether she was lying or not.

"Emily, I'm telling you this now, and I will repeat it until you fully understand it...I am here for you if you ever need anything." He was going to add something else, but she brushed him off.

"I'm fine, Aaron, truly, I'm just stressed with work. I'm meeting the girls tonight, so hopefully that will help." Her answer seemed genuine, so he let it drop.

After Hotch and Violet left, she quickly withdrew her phone from her leather jacket and texted the number that had been sending her those terrifying text messages that made her skin crawl and fueled her dreams.

" _ **We need to talk."**_

She then grabbed her purse and headed out the door and drove around in circles unable to decide where she was going. It wasn't until almost an hour later that she finally stopped at a coffee shop on the outskirts of town. She sat down at one of the patio tables knowing full well he would eventually appear. She didn't remember how long she was waiting, she only knew it was now dark, she was cold, tired and exhausted from everything going on in her life.

She nearly jumped when she felt a hand touch her arm from behind and attempted to calm herself and not look as terrified as she was. He sat in front of her smiling and watching her carefully; she had been having nightmares about this moment with each of them ending just as tragic as the others.

"Hello, Lauren...or should I say Emily Hotchner." He said smiling. "Oh, wait, you don't go by Hotchner anymore, do you?" He asked with a satisfied grin on his face.

"Hello, Ian." She replied, clenching her teeth as the adrenaline rushed through her body while she felt her heart jumping.

"

" _ **Just because you have a past with someone, doesn't mean you should have a future with them." -Robert Tew**_

 _ **Okay my lovely readers here is the moment you were waiting for, ...**_

 _ **Our bad guy is in fact Ian Doyle. I tried to come up with a different character and something unique, but I realized how realistic is the idea of Ian Doyle hunting her past. I tried other characters in other stories and readers weren't as interested as they were with Ian Doyle persona. ] As you by now noticed this story is not the usual Ian Doyle/ Lauren Reynolds you have read or even seen on show. I use the plot as an inspiration but it will run way different than anything you have ever seen. I also have different characters playing roles and part of the story, so if you don't understand something ask on a review and I will do my best to answer without giving away the whole plot. Matt Cruz was in fact and old flame and he is not trying to hurt Emily; he is still in love with her but he will never actually harm her. I will also add Clyde Easter to the story but as the main leader of the JFT-12 and he will also be involved in this story but as Emily's friend and nothing else. I chose to add Cruz because I feel like everyone always uses Emily/Clyde/ and I wanted to add something different.**_

 _ **Please review and comment on anything you will like to see happening and if you like this story and is worth the time to continue...**_

 _ **Thanks again**_

 _ **P.S I will still update on the other pending stories as most of you now know I had so many heart issues for so long and I am still having some as of today. I am working the best of my ability and I do plan on updating all the stories and finishing them.**_


	4. Chapter Four

_**The Face of Love: Chapter Four**_

" _So it's true, when all is said and done, grief is the price we pay for love."_

― _E.A. Bucchianer_

After Hotch and Violet left, Emily quickly withdrew her phone from her leather jacket and texted the number that had been sending her all those text messages that made her skin crawl and chased her dreams.

" _ **We need to talk."**_

She then grabbed her purse and headed out of the house, driving around in circles unable to decide where she was going. It wasn't until almost one hour later that she finally stopped at a coffee shop on the outskirts of town. She sat down at once at the patio tables knowing full-well he would eventually appear. But, she didn't remember how long she was waiting, she only knew she was cold, tired and exhausted from everything going on in her life.

She nearly jumped when she felt a hand touch her arm from behind, she attempted to calm herself and not look as terrified as she was. He sat in front of her smiling and watching her carefully, she had been having nightmares about this moment each of them ending just as tragic as the other one.

"Hello Lauren...or should I say Emily Hotchner?" He smirked then he took a seat right in front of her. "Oh wait, you don't go by Hotchner anymore, do you?" He added with a satisfied grin on his face.

"Hello, Ian." Emily answered, clenching her teeth with adrenaline rushing through her body while feeling her heart jumping.

"How are you, Darling? For sure, you're more beautiful with each passing day." Ian stated. Emily hated that she couldn't really read his eyes.

"I wasn't sure you were going to come." She responded when she was able to regain her composure.

"You said you wanted to talk, so talk!" Ian said, which made Emily remember the real reason she had asked to meet with him.

"If you ever come near her again, if you even consider coming near any of them, I will kill you with my bare hands!" She barked with fire on her eyes. Ian just chuckled.

"Relax, Love, anger doesn't become you." He watched her, and for a minute, he could really see a hint of Lauren Reynolds on her face.

"You promised you would leave them out of this, Ian." She glared at him as her voice began to quiver.

"I just wanted you to experience a bit of what I felt when you hurt my son." Ian stated as a matter of fact. His answer angered Emily who unclasped her gun from her hip and deactivated the safety under the table.

"Put your gun away, Emily, we both know you would never make it back to your car if you shot me." Ian stated as he settled back in his chair. Emily took a few deep breaths to calm herself; her hands were shaking, and she thought he might kill her right there.

"What do you want Ian, I can't do this much longer, please just tell me what you want." She begged.

"You already know what I want...I want YOU, Love..." He added with a grin that made Emily shiver.

"Then take me now, but please leave them alone." She begged. "It's me you want to hurt, please leave my daughter alone."

"There she is, the _"Lauren"_ I fell in love with, fierce and willing to do anything in the name of love."

"I can't change what happened, I was doing my job." Emily just shook her head while looking away; she wasn't sure how much longer she could play this game.

"You know, when I first saw you six months ago, I wanted to end you right then and there; I could have just taken you and kill you then." There was a strange spark in his blue eyes, something Emily had never seen.

"Why didn't you? Why are you putting me through this? Why are you torturing me?" She said as her eyes started glistening.

"Oh, Love, don't say that, I'm not torturing you, why would I?" He inquired, reaching to grab her hand from across the table where they sat…she quickly snatched her hand back, so he couldn't hold it.

"I love you, Emily." He said simply, looking away as if the admission was something he truly regretted.

"What?" She asked in shock. "You have been doing all this…blackmailing and torturing me as a demented declaration of love?" Emily couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"I can't deny I was angry with you at first…I hated you…and all I wanted to do was destroy you." His voice was filled with anger, and Emily's heart started beating rapidly again, she still could not believe what she was hearing.

"But then, I realized I really did still love you; I've been watching you. I've seen you around Hotchner and around Violet, then I remembered the way you used to be with Declan, maybe Lauren Reynolds isn't truly death after all."

"You are deranged…you have no idea what love is!" She uttered, closing her eyes as tears filled her eyes.

"And you do? If I remember correctly, you used love in the most profane way; how does that make you better than me." Ian questioned, and for once in very long time, Emily couldn't form an answer, she just sat there looking at him feeling emptier than she ever had.

"I am exhausted, Ian, I'm tired of this game, if you're going to kill me, just do it." She begged, at her wits end.

"Oh, Love, but maybe I don't want to kill you anymore." He confessed with a combination of anger and emotion in his voice.

"Then what, Ian?" She shouted, she was so tired of this game, of running away and hiding things.

"Maybe I just want you back, maybe I can forgive you if you're are mine again." Emily's mouth dropped open, after everything he had put her through, she simply didn't understand.

"I can't be Lauren anymore, Ian." She confessed with fear.

"It's okay, Emily, there really isn't a difference anyway, is there; I just want you whoever you are."

"At what price, Ian?"

"That is a decision you're going to have to make, Love…is it me, or is it their lives?" He queried, standing up and leaving before Emily was able to respond.

Emily just sat there in the cold night unable to understand or come to terms with what had happened. For six months, she had been terrified that, at any second, Ian would come and kill her, Aaron, or their children in revenge for what he considered she had done to him, only to learn he truly was still obsessed with her and wanted her back in his life, alive, no matter the price.

Emily drove back to the city with her mind going a mile a minute. She drummed her fingers on the steering wheel as she waited at the red light. What if Ian Doyle was only playing games with her and this was just another way to trick her only to end up killing her anyway. She knew very well Doyle got off on power and control, but this was way beyond his level of "sociopath". Did he really want her back in his life? And what did that exactly mean? Was she going to have to spend the rest of her life next to him pretending to love him just so he didn't kill her? If it was really the only way she knew to keep Violet, Jack and Aaron alive, she would do it. But what was the guarantee that he wasn't going to kill her anyway? After all, he wanted revenge and to hurt her for taking Declan away from him. Is that what he really wanted…for her to be away from Violet so she could suffer the way he said he had when Declan disappeared from his life?

She parked her car again outside of JJ's house, wiping away her tears and eyeliner that had smeared beneath her lashes. She reapplied a little more mascara and lipstick, and she hoped her friends wouldn't really read her and realize she wasn't okay. She rang JJ's doorbell and a very happy and chirpy Penelope Garcia greeted her; it appeared as she had already been drinking.

"There you are, my raven-haired sweetness...I was beginning to think you wouldn't show up!" Garcia loudly proclaimed as she hugged her friend.

"I would never bail out on you, Pen, you know that!" Emily smiled genuinely she truly did love time with her friends. Penelope and JJ were the closest thing she ever had to sisters.

"Look what I have found?" Penelope sang in a tone that confirmed Emily's earlier guess that her friend was, indeed, already drunk, at the very least, tipsy. JJ laughed from across the kitchen island where she was preparing dinner.

"See, when I said we should hang out, I actually meant really hang out, not just have you come for a few minutes right before bedtime."

"It's barely eight," Emily laughingly said, hugging the blonde.

"I have two children in case you forgot." JJ pointed out waving her spatula toward her friend. "Eight o'clock is usually late for me after running after two boys all day long."

Both Emily and Penelope giggled as Emily sat on the stool at the counter next to the analyst who was now filling a glass of wine for Emily.

"Yeah, I have kids, too, eight is usually around the time I am chasing after Violet to get her to shower." she smirked.

"Where is my little vanilla cupcake by the way?" Penelope suddenly asked as she had just now realized Emily was alone.

"You need to be cut off, Pen." Emily just shook her head while laughing. "Violet is with Aaron tonight."

"Wasn't today your weekend with her?" JJ asked, still unable to believe her two friends had divorced.

"Yeah, it is, but Jack had a soccer game tonight, and Aaron really wanted Vi to go with them." The brunette responded as she took a sip of her wine.

"I can't blame him, Will said the team is getting so good, I am sure all the kids will have a great time." JJ's children, Lucas and Henry, were also in one of the soccer teams Aaron, David and Will coached. Jack and Henry were only a few years apart, but they still played on the same team. Lucas was still learning, but the guys had decided to create another team for the little kids. That way they could all have something to do with the children during the weekends.

"They are really enjoying teaching the kids, aren't they" Penelope stated. "Maybe I should make shirts for all of them, so they'll match." She suddenly got excited about making the shirts.

"Yeah, good luck getting David to put one on." Said Emily, smirking.

"Or Morgan." JJ added. "Hell, I don't even think you could talk Hotch into wearing one."

"Actually, I don't really think Aaron would oppose the idea." Emily thoughtfully stated. "He truly loves the time he spends around the kids, and he literally would do anything to make them happy." She added sadly. JJ narrowed her eyes at her friend, but Emily quickly looked away from her scrutinizing look.

"I can see that, even with Violet, he has gone so soft it's almost funny." The blonde commented, and Emily's face only reflected more sadness. Even Penelope was aware of the sadness in her friend's eyes.

"You still love our boss man, don't you?" She asked as she touched her friend's arm softly. The brunette took a bit too long to respond.

"Oh, Em, then why are you doing this?" JJ dropped the spatula she had in her hand and moved closer to her friend reaching for her hand.

"I'm not doing anything, we really separated because, I don't know, I guess we just grew out of love." She wanted to sound so convincing.

"Emily, he hasn't stopped loving you and you know that." JJ said as she crossed her arms on her chest; she knew Emily was hiding something and hated that she couldn't confide in her…weren't they best friends, after all.

"JJ, I really don't want to talk about this right now." Emily iterated, closing her eyes.

"Then when, Emily? You've been avoiding this for six months now, we're your friends, we can help." JJ said, exasperated.

"Em, she's right, we're here for you, just tell us what's wrong."

"Nothing!" Emily finally snapped. "Why can't you guys leave this alone?" She said, irritated.

"Because we are your friends, we love you, and we know you didn't divorce Hotch because you don't love him, something is going on and you won't tell us."

"Oh really, Jennifer? Because you know exactly how love works, you have been with Will all these years knowing full well you are in love with someone else…that's very hypocritical of you." Emily regretted the words even before they flew out of their mouth, the look of hurt in her friend's eyes broke her heart, and she just stood there looking at JJ's eyes full of tears; it wasn't a secret to her friends that she and Will had been in a rough patch for a long time. Even before Lucas was born, the only reason why they had stayed together was because of the kids. Emily had always suspected JJ was in love with David Rossi, they had been friends for so long, and it was Dave who had helped her go through the most difficult times of her life.

Of course, it wasn't as simple to just leave Will and be with Dave because she didn't want to hurt the children, and Dave himself came with a whole new set of complications. JJ, indeed, had feelings for Dave, feelings she had been denying for a while, and having her best friend throw it in her face like that truly broke her heart. The blonde shook her head wiping her eyes as she turned to look away from Emily. As mad as she was, she knew full well that Emily's angered words were just the result of whatever was going on in her life that had her so mortified.

"Em, come on, you know we really are just trying to help you." Penelope said, reaching to touch her hand. However, Emily withdrew her hand and stood up from the stool where she was sitting, picking up her jacket and purse.

"Emily, come on, don't leave." The analyst begged which made the blonde turn around and face her best friend of eight years.

"Emily, just please...stay, I'm just worried about you." JJ said, fighting the evident tears in her eyes.

"Don't be, I don't need you to worry about me, and I definitely don't need your pity." Emily stated, and before anyone could say anything else, Emily was gone.

JJ and Penelope stood in the kitchen watching the door their best friend had just disappeared through. It wasn't like Emily to behave like this and say those hurtful things; in the eight years they had known her, they had never argued like this. They always had their disagreements, but they were so close they usually just talked everything through and ended up laughing about it later. JJ knew that something really bad must be going on in Emily's life for her to be behaving like this.

"I'm so sorry, Jayje." Penelope said and came to hug her. Just like JJ, the analyst didn't believe Emily would purposely hurt JJ and her; she, too, was worried and now more so.

"It's okay, I don't know what's wrong with her. I hardly recognize her." JJ said truthfully, still looking at the doors Emily had walked through.

"Do you think it's about Hotch? I mean, she obviously still loves him, we can all see that; and Hotch, have you seen him? He's a mess since she left him."

"I know, he has been on a roll between him and Cruz. I don't know how much longer I can deal with the testosterone at work." The blonde said, taking a seat on one of the stools, sipping her wine.

"Cruz?" Penelope asked confused. "Oh my God, wait!?" She said covering her mouth. "You don't think Emily and Cruz are..., do you?" Penelope could barely form the words.

"No, of course not!" JJ said, looking away. She had forgotten that Penelope didn't really know what had happened between the brunette and the Deputy Director years ago.

As Emily drove home with tears running down her cheeks attempting to remain calm. She knew she had deeply hurt JJ, and it pained her so much. They had been friends for so long and, JJ was, no doubt, the best friend she had ever had. Emily hadn't meant to hurt her friend that way, she just felt pressured and was beginning to lose her compartmentalization skills.

When she arrived home, she quickly spotted the Lincoln SUV parked in the driveway of her house. For a minute, her heart skipped a beat, but she knew if Ian was there to kill her, he would not park outside her house for everyone to see. So, she pulled in the garage and walked out to the driveway where a blonde, good-looking man stepped out of the SUV smiling at her.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, she knew he would show up at some point.

"Hello, Darlin', it's nice to see you, too." He sarcastically stated as he walked closer to her.

"Cut the bullshit, Clyde, what are you doing here?" She was so irritated at his suave attitude.

"You know why I'm here, Emily, what the hell is the matter with you!?" Clyde queried as Emily opened the front door of her house letting the British man in, not having any other choice.

"Have you been talking to Cruz? Did he put you up to this?" Emily asked, walking into the kitchen and grabbing the kettle from the stove.

"Darlin', how many times do I have to tell you I don't take orders from others?" Clyde smiled taking a seat at her kitchen counter.

Emily just smiled sardonically shaking her head, digging through the cabinets for teabags then pouring two mugs of hot tea. Turning around to hand one to Clyde and holding the other one in her own hands, while the hot liquid warming her hands gave her little to no comfort.

"No, let's get to the real order of business." Clyde amended taking a small sip from the tea and scrunching his nose…he would never understand why the brunette liked these stupid teas so much.

"What were you doing talking to him today? Are you out of your mind!" He asked, as he couldn't comprehend she would even think of talking to Doyle, let alone see him.

"Are you following me?" She asked, irritated.

"I wouldn't have to follow you if you were fucking honest." He barked. "What the hell were you thinking meeting him like that? Do you want to fucking die?"

"I needed to talk to him, and he's not going to kill me." She told him as a matter of fact.

"Emily, he's a sociopath; you don't know what he wants and what he's capable of." Clyde said aggravated. "Do I need to remind you the man wants revenge for what we did to him?"

"He wants me, Clyde, I'm the one who put him away." She reminded him, frustrated.

"He wants all of us, he wants to wipe out the entire team that put him away!" He barked, banging his fist on the kitchen counter. "Goddammit, Emily, how can you be so stupid to risk everything meeting him like that?"

"He doesn't want to hurt anyone else, Clyde, his beef is with me." She iterated as her eyes filled with tears.

"He already blackmailed you into divorcing Hotchner! How in the hell do you not know he will kill you and all of us…He is a murderer, Emily?"

"He is not going to kill anyone!" Emily shouted, "He only wants me back, that is all."

"He wants you back? What is that supposed...". But he stopped talking, looking at her unable to believe what he was hearing.

"NO! Absolutely no!" Clyde warned. "Are you out of your fucking mind?"

"It's the only way he will leave everyone alone." Emily said almost in a whisper as tears rolled down her cheeks.

" _ **...the wounds of the past and the scars of the present don't disfigure me in your eyes - because you know the price I pay for loving you ..."**_

― _**John Geddes,**_


	5. Chapter 5

**The Face of Love: Chapter Five**

" _No man is happy without a delusion of some kind. Delusions are as necessary to our happiness as realities."_ _―_ _Christian Nestell Bovee_

Emily just smiled sardonically shaking her head, digging through the cabinets for teabags then pouring two mugs of hot tea. Turning around to hand one to Clyde and holding the other one in her own hands, however, the hot liquid warming her hands gave her little to no comfort.

"No, let's get to the real order of business." Clyde amended, taking a small sip from the tea and scrunching his nose…he would never understand why the brunette liked these stupid teas so much.

"What were you doing talking to him today? Are you out of your mind!" He asked; he couldn't comprehend she would even think of talking to Doyle, let alone see him.

"Are you following me?" She asked, irritated.

"I wouldn't have to follow you if you were fucking honest." He barked. "What the hell were you thinking meeting him like that? Do you want to fucking die!?"

"I needed to talk to him, and he's not going to kill me." She told him as a matter of fact.

"Emily, he's a sociopath; you don't know what he wants and what he's capable of." Clyde said aggravated. "Do I need to remind you the man wants revenge for what we did to him?"

"He wants me, Clyde, I'm the one who put him away." She reminded him, frustrated.

"He wants all of us, he wants to wipe out the entire team that put him away!" He barked, banging his fist on the kitchen counter. "Goddammit, Emily, how can you be so stupid to risk everything meeting him like that?"

"He doesn't want to hurt anyone else, Clyde, his beef is with me." She iterated as her eyes filled with tears.

"He already blackmailed you into divorcing Hotchner! How in the hell do you not know he will kill you and all of us…He is a murderer, Emily?"

"He is not going to kill anyone!" Emily shouted, "He only wants me back, that's all."

"He wants you back? What is that supposed...". But he stopped talking, looking at her unable to believe what he was hearing coming out of her mouth.

"NO! Absolutely no!" Clyde warned. "Are you out of your fucking mind?"

"It's the only way he will leave everyone alone." Emily said almost in a whisper as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"You are fucking delusional!" Clyde barked slamming both his hands down on the kitchen counter." "Are you listening to yourself?"

"You don't understand, Clyde…" Emily attempted to say looking away from him.

"I don't understand? You are telling me he wants you to be his lover again, to actually be with him, and you're considering it?" Clyde yelled losing all sense of decorum.

"It's an option, Clyde, it could work."

"You're not thinking straight!" He was so mad he wanted to shake her till her teeth rattled. "You're clearly having a mental breakdown; your judgment is obviously severely impaired."

"I'm fully cognizant of the situation; you don't get to decide what's good for me anymore."

"Really? Because obviously going to live with a fucking psychopath shows an incredible level of cognition." Clyde smirked, aggravated.

"You made me live with that psychopath to save your ass and your job!" Emily snapped at him, tears shinning in her eyes.

"Emily..."

"Don't! Don't Emily me...I lived with him for two fucking years to give YOU a profile! What makes you think I wouldn't do that to protect my own child's life?"

"Emily, please, you're not listening." Clyde begged.

"He came near my child, Clyde, he has been watching me, he could have killed Violet today." She said as desperate tears started rolling down her cheeks.

"Darlin', I know how that must felt..." Clyde stated and tried to approach her.

"Don't you fucking dare to tell me you know how that feels!" Emily warned dangerously, "You have no fucking idea what it fucking feels like!"

"Then what is your plan, Em? What are you gonna do?" Clyde snapped right back at her.

"I don't have tell you anything I do, Clyde, I don't work for you anymore." She said, walking out of the kitchen.

"Yeah, go ahead and fucking run! You're good at that!" Clyde called after her, but the door closed behind her, and he was left alone in the kitchen.

He rubbed his face tiredly, and angrily; they were running out of time, and he needed to act before Emily did something stupid. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed a number as he made his way out of the brunette's house.

"Yeah?" A man answered on the other end of the phone line.

"Matt, we need to talk…I'm coming to you." Clyde informed him.

"Did you talk to her?" Cruz asked, fully aware Clyde was in town.

"It's worse than we thought…she's clearly lost her mind."

A few days after Clyde's visit, Emily was working a case in D.C with the BAU; a Deputy Sheriff had been shot near the Capitol. For the past few days they had a series of similar attacks around the city, the Bureau considered the case an act of terrorism. Emily's team, along with the BAU, was assigned to the case. They had been working to get a profile from very early on, but they still had no leads. Even Hotch had been dragged into this as well given that a law enforcement officer had been killed.

That made the case personal for everyone given that one of their own had been targeted, and they were not going to rest until the killer was caught and justice was served. Hotch was in front of the Capitol talking to the Chief of the D.C. Police, they were discussing the severity of the situation. Whether or not Hotch liked it, his current position with the BAU involved way more politics than what he was comfortable with; unfortunately, it was one of the hazards of the job. He saw Emily walking toward them after being briefed by one of the Police Lieutenants about the incident.

She was wearing a black business suit and high heels, a dark purple silk blouse, a light pink scarf, and she left her wool coat unbuttoned. Hotch watched her for a second as she approached them thinking she was more beautiful than ever, but she looked exhausted…beautiful nonetheless. He tried to remember the first time he kissed her; it was probably the moment he realized he was in love with her. He would never get tired of looking at her, her beauty was so intoxicating he could spend his entire life looking at her and never get tired.

"So, this guy is definitely not afraid to get personal." She stated, looking at both Hotch and the Chief.

"In a manner of speaking," the Chief said; "If you watch the tapes, his face is never looking straight at the cameras, so he knows he's being watched."

"That can only mean he knows where each camera is aimed." Hotch confirmed shifting hos attention around the Capitol.

"So, he's clearly organized." Emily stated. "He's gotten away with killing five people without drawing attention to himself, he knows what he's doing." Her eyes landed on the crime scene that was now being analyzed by forensics' team.

Hotch almost smiled…he had missed working with her so much, he had almost forgotten what a turn-on it was to watch her in action.

"That can only mean if he has access to the cameras, he knows we're here." Hotch explained looking around.

"Are you saying he wanted you guys here?" The Police Chief asked looking at them with concern.

"I'm saying there's a reason why he targeted a member of the Police Department." Hotch clarified.

Emily's heart skipped a beat for a second as she attempted to remain calm on the exterior. She was thinking that if Ian was behind these shootings, he was obviously using that to prove to her what he was capable of doing if she didn't do what he wanted her to do.

"Chief Barnes…" JJ interrupted them as she approached them, and everyone turned to look at her.

"The press already has access to a video of the shooting." She told them, getting their attention and pulling the Chief away leaving Emily and Hotch alone.

"Are you okay?" Hotch asked the question he had been repeating for almost six months now while he looked at her with a mixture of sadness and longing.

"Yeah, I'm okay, I hate it when it's one of our own." She sighed looking him directly in the eyes. "I somehow have a feeling neither of us will make it home tonight." Emily whispered, wrapping her arms around her chest.

"It's okay, Em, I'll tell my mom to keep Violet for the night." He reassured her looking at her in a comforting way.

"Sometimes this job makes me feel like such a horrible mother."

"Emily, having to work doesn't make you a bad mother." For a minute, her eyes focused on him, and he was able to read her in that moment of vulnerability. He could still see a glimpse of her heart still beating for him and that fire in her eyes that would consume him. That one look had him madly in love with her like he never was before.

"I choose to work, Aaron." She looked away from him unable to look him in the eyes any longer.

"I know, and that's the reason why the children and I look up to you, you're our hero."

"I find that really hard to believe." She replied as she shifted her gaze way from him before he could say anything else.

She smiled for a second a smile that barely touched her lips, and they started walking together where JJ and the rest of the team were now speaking with other officers about the unsub's profile. By the end of the night, they hadn't gotten any closer to catching the unsub from where they had started. Everyone was exhausted, and it was obvious that they needed a break. So, the team was now at a pub getting something to eat and getting their minds off the case for a bit.

On any other day, Emily would have gone straight home, but she was so exhausted and thought maybe eating something and getting her head away from everything, including Ian, wasn't such a bad idea. She wasn't sure if it was out of a coincidence, or it was the team's doing, but she and Hotch ended up sitting next to each other at the table. Reid and Morgan ordered a beer while Dave and Hotch had decided to opt for scotch; JJ was just drinking water and the same for Emily.

Emily and JJ had not talked about the argument that had happened at the blonde's house a few nights ago. It wasn't like JJ was holding a grudge against Emily; it's just that they really hadn't had the time to sit down and discuss it. They had been very busy for the past two days and the few opportunities they had to themselves, Emily had been completely avoiding JJ. That had JJ very worried, and she knew that it was time to talk to Hotch and really figure out what was going with the brunette, she just hadn't had the time yet.

As the team settled around the table, conversation drifted around about the case they were working on to Lucas's upcoming birthday party. Because his birthday was so close to July 4th, a day of traditional to get together and have a family celebration...they were discussing the possibility of having just one big gathering to celebrate both. Emily watched the team talk absentmindedly picking at what was left of her fingernails. It wasn't until Hotch reached beneath the table to grab one of her hands caressing it softly and looking at her kindly.

"You know you have nothing left to chew on right? ." He whispered very softly caressing her knuckles with his thumb.

"It's a bad habit, I guess." She said nonchalantly

"Tell me what's on your mind, Sweetheart."

"Honestly, I don't even know." Emily replied, squeezing his hand and giving him a tired smile.

"Is it the case? I mean, I know it's personal for all of us, but I have a feeling something else is on your mind." He questioned.

She smirked reaching across the table to grab the glass of scotch he was drinking and taking a few gulps and closing her eyes.

"I guess is just everything, the case, Violet, I hate when we aren't home for the night with her." She answered. "And now JJ is mad at me." She confessed before she was able to stop herself.

Hotch looked around the table spotting the blonde profiler arguing with Rossi about the decorations for the party since it was going be her son's party and not Rossi's. Everyone was clearly so intent on discussing the planning of the party, they had not been paying attention to him and Emily.

"Why is JJ mad?" He questioned because he couldn't remember the last time the two females had fought. Emily just shrugged her shoulders and took another sip from the burning liquor.

As the food arrived with everyone engaged in lighthearted conversations, Hotch kept holding Emily's hand under the table. He had ordered two more drinks, one for Emily and another for him. Drinking probably wasn't the smartest idea right now, but they were both exhausted and burned out from the case, and it would definitely help clear their minds a little. As he finished his second drink and Emily was working on the vodka she had ordered instead of the scotch, Aaron realized she had hardly touched her food. Plus, she truly looked exhausted, and it was more than evident she hadn't sleep in days.

"Emily, you need to eat something, Sweetheart, we've been working all day." He suggested in a very worried voice.

"I'm really not hungry." Emily admitted in a low voice; he studied her eyes quickly.

"Sweetheart, why don't you let me take you home...you're obviously exhausted. I don't want you driving now with what you have had to drink." He said, squeezing her hand.

"Okay." She agreed completely surprising him given the current status of their relationship. He smiled softly at her then turned around to inform the team he was going to drive Emily home and after that he was going to to head home himself to get some sleep.

The team didn't even dare say anything; it had been so long since they had seen them share any kind of affectionate interaction, they weren't about to ruin it for them. They watched as Hotch pulled out a few bills from his wallet and threw them on the center of the table and then turned around to help Emily with her coat. After they said their goodbyes, they walked out, his hand on her back leading her from the restaurant.

He drove Emily home keeping his eyes focused on the road, occasionally looking over to the brunette who was lying back against the seat with her mind a million miles away. He would give his life to see her happy again, to bring back the light to her beautiful eyes.

When they arrived at the house, he opened the car door for her, taking her hand helping her out of the car; doing the same at the front door of the house and following her inside.

"Why don't you let me make you some hot tea, maybe it will help you relax and sleep."

"I'm pretty sure two glasses of scotch and one of vodka will do the trick just as well." She smirked, making him smile a real smile he hadn't shown in a while.

"I'll make one just in case, why don't you go upstairs and get comfortable." He suggested without even caring that he had not lived in the house for over six months now, but it didn't seem to bother the brunette because she nodded tiredly and made her way upstairs.

When Aaron went upstairs into her room to take her the tea; she was coming out of the shower dressed in her silk gown and matching robe only looking marginally better. He placed the cup of tea on her nightstand and turned around to face her. 

"Do you need anything else?" He asked tenderly.

"No, Aaron, thank you so much; I'm okay, you should head home, it's really late." Her voice sounding as tired as she looked, but it wasn't just exhaustion that he could see in her.

"I don't feel comfortable leaving knowing full well you're not okay." He confessed, looking nowhere in particular.

"I told you I'm okay, you also need to get some rest and sleep." Her words weren't reflecting annoyance with his presence, only anguish and fear.

"Sweetheart, what are you so afraid off?" Aaron approached her again looking at her so deeply it made her feel totally vulnerable.

"I'm not afraid of anything." She repeated trying to convince herself more so than him.

"Baby, tell me what's bothering you? There is nothing in this world I wouldn't do for you." His eyes glistening and emotion thick in his voice.

"Aaron...I am..." Emily struggled to form her words.

"I love you so much, I love you more than anything in this world besides Vi and Jack...you're everything to me...you three are everything I have in this world." Now, it was her whose eyes were shining as she stood looking at him. He put his arms around her waist pulling her against him. "I love you, and I will love you for the rest of my life."

"I love you, too, Aaron, but…" Her words were cut off as he pulled her in for a kiss, hugging her closer and deepening the kiss.

It was such a different level of intimacy; it was never just about sex with them. Sex was something easy, something they had both done for years with other partners and even with themselves as a couple. It wasn't that sexual satisfaction and urgency to release and explode, it was about the level of emotional connection they shared every time they were like this. It was about losing themselves in each other between kisses and physical contact. It was about this bubbling sensation and tickling which started in the pit of their stomach moving through their entire souls burning like fuel in every inch of their body. Something so magical, unique and pure, it could only be achieved by two people who so deeply loved each other that they could feel their bodies melting and fusing into one single soul.

Aaron waited for her to push him away or pull back, but she didn't; instead, she deepened the kiss, and they stood there kissing for a while. His hand eventually moved to cup her face and his other hand held her in place while their kisses intensified. Emily never pulled away; neither of them stopped, not even when he moved them over to the bed falling onto the soft mattress among mounds of pillows. The fire and passion ignited within minutes, and just for a moment, everything around them stopped existing.

His hands moved carefully to push down the straps of her nightgown; he wasn't sure how much further she was going to let him go, but in the moment, all he cared about was this feeling of elation and absolute love he only felt when he was with her like this. So intimately close because only Emily Prentiss could make him see stars behind his closed eyes. She gasped softly as his mouth left hers for a second, their eyes meeting, as her hands fought against the knot in his tie. He started tracing soft kisses along her collarbone and moving down pushing her silk nightgown down passed her breasts letting it pool at her waist, his soft warm lips kissing her neck so tenderly and lovingly…she started shivering as her hand moved to run her fingers through his short hair.

"Aaron..." She purred, throwing her head back; there was an absolute infinite joy that he got from hearing her whisper his name in that husky tone.

"Baby, you are absolutely exquisite." Aaron whispered capturing one of her puckered nipples in his mouth and running his tongue around the delicate skin. That only made her shiver and moan in luscious ecstasy. Emily's hands desperately tried to unbutton his shirt, a big a part of her wanting to really stop him before they could even begin. But, right here right now, she could no longer think because only he had ever made her feel like this, so desperately lost and inebriated in love and passion with a feeling that was more about immersing herself into his heart and soul. Emily had never experienced anything like this feeling while making love with anyone else; because, of course, there was fucking and then there was making love. But, what Aaron and she did was more than that…nothing would ever compare to this feeling of completeness and absolute delight. It was like he could take her to this place where she could spend her entire life and never get tired. Higher than the clouds, higher and stronger than anything that had ever existed.

With his shirt and slacks now off, she had full access to his broad back and toned ass, her short finger nails raking across his back and strong shoulders desperately trying to mold them together while their tongues fought in a battle of domination and eagerness that couldn't be described. His strong arms finally released her from her nightgown, having her almost completely naked for him, writhing and frantically whispering his name like a sweet prayer.

"I love you, Aaron, I love you so much." She cried in pleasure as her eyes filled with tears that were ready to spill down her beautiful face.

"No, no, no, no, baby, don't cry please..." He begged stopping for a second thinking he might have hurt her with his passionate roughness.

"Shh...just focus...stay with me...make love to me, baby..." She said in a broken and husky tone, closing her eyes tightly because she was afraid tears would start spilling from her eyes.

When he finally connected them in the most intimate and purely passionate way two human beings could be connected, Emily almost cried again. But she preferred to focus on his hot mouth that was now leaving a trail across her collarbone making her skin shiver, she preferred to focus on the sweat forming on his forehead while his strong body worked on the thrusting that was so pleasurable and maybe painful. Not that he would intentionally hurt her, but when he was so excited, it could be a mixture of comfort and discomfort at the same time.

"Oh, Aaron..." Emily cried in pleasure as he took her to that high place, then she was falling through the blackness and landing in this perfect bliss of clouds.

"God, baby..." Aaron gasped as he, too, stared falling through the same paradise of pleasure.

As they both held each other tightly, he was still inside her kissing her so tenderly and so softly Emily was sure she would break down and begin sobbing in his arms. She had never felt this warm feeling of safeness and completeness with any other man; she could forget about the entire world when she was in this man's arms. Right here, right now, she knew she was absolutely the most lucky and happiest woman alive.

Emily fell asleep in his arms knowing full well that everything would be over the following morning…

 _ **Love is not a feeling of happiness. Love is a willingness to sacrifice.- Michael Novak**_


	6. Chapter 6

_**The Face of Love: Chapter Six**_

 _There can be no deep disappointment where there is not deep love. Martin Luther King, Jr._

July fourth was here before anyone even noticed it; it was a warm sunny day in the nation's capital. It was also a Saturday that was greatly appreciated with their three-day weekend off without serial killers or kidnappers. It wasn't often the team got to spend much time for themselves, and they were going to take advantage of the much-deserved time off. The team had agreed to celebrate the 4th at JJ's house along with Lucas's fourth birthday party. JJ was now in her big backyard setting the final snacks and drinks on the table. Penelope was nearby playing with Lucas and inflating the rest of the balloons, Will had been called away to a case outside of D.C., something that completely pissed off JJ…even on his son's birthday, he couldn't bother to take the time off to be with his son and the team to celebrate. However, she wasn't about to let that ruin her son's birthday party. Spencer and Derek were working on setting up the grill for the barbeque, and JJ could hear them arguing from the other side of the yard.

"I'm telling you," Spencer said mortified, "You're doing it all wrong, you're going to set us on fire."

"Relax, genius boy, I know exactly what I'm doing." Derek told him.

"Ah no, you don't, it's just your overconfidence deluding you again." Spencer said, looking at the grill as if it were about to explode. In response to his comment, Morgan playfully slapped his arm.

"Ouch! JJ, he just hit me." The young profiler complained to her as the blonde passed by them to get more drinks from the house.

"Boys, behave, or I will ground you both." JJ joked playfully smiling widely and hoping this day turned out as wonderful as she had planned.

She was in the kitchen gathering a few bottles of juice for the children when the front door opened, and Henry came bursting through followed by Jack. Both kids hardly acknowledged JJ before they were off to the backyard chasing after each other with a water gun.

JJ turned to face Rossi who had brought the kids from soccer practice straight to the party.

"Okay, I'm here, Jen, what needs to be done?" Dave asked in his overconfident tone making JJ smile and roll her eyes.

"We're almost done, actually." She replied then turned to the door expecting to see Hotch coming in any second.

"Where's Hotch…I thought he was with you at the park?" She questioned with her brows furrowed.

"He was, he went to get Violet, but the kids wanted to come straight home, so I brought them." Dave explained, taking the bottles of juice from the blonde's hands to help her.

"Wait, why is he getting Violet?" JJ asked confused. "Why can't Emily just bring her when she comes?'

"I don't think Emily is coming." Dave said sincerely looking at her a little disappointed.

"Why? She is Lucas's godmother, I thought this would mean something to her." JJ was obviously hurt; the fact that she and Emily still hadn't talked after their fight was really starting to bug her.

"I don't know, Stella Mia." David said shaking his head. "All I know is that she called Aaron and asked him to pick up Violet...she said something about having something important to take care of."

"More important than her godson's party?"

"I know, Jen, but please just drop it there…Aaron is already having a difficult time with this as it is. Let's just have fun today." He suggested as he left the blonde there with more questions than ever.

JJ nodded and attempted to calm down, it was already hard enough that Will had decided to bail on their son's birthday party, but having her best friend do the same wasn't exactly making things better.

A few hours later, everyone was gathered in JJ's back yard, along with a few of Lucas's and Henry's street friends running around and playing without a care in the world. Violet was being entertained by Spencer who was showing magic tricks to her and another boy who lived down the street from JJ's house. Penelope and JJ's mother were talking and laughing with some of the guests, and Kevin and Diana, Spencer's mother, was helping at the grill looking happier than anyone had ever seen them.

Dave, JJ, Derek and Aaron were all sitting at a table nearby; JJ was still not letting go of the fact that Emily didn't even bother show up at her son's birthday party, nor even send a message.

"So, I guess is safe to assume she is not going to bother calling to explain why she wasn't here." She said, a little hurt. Aaron just turned to look at her; he knew very well what it meant for JJ to have Emily there on such an important day.

"JJ, I don't even know what to say, I can't even make excuses because I truly don't even have any." He confessed truthfully, hurt as well.

"I just don't understand what can be so important." JJ insisted unable to control her emotions.

"Jen, come on, just leave it." Dave pleaded, knowing full well that this subject was obviously a delicate one for his long-time friend.

"Do we all agree something really bad is going on with her? " Morgan questioned everyone as if it was necessary to discuss this subject.

"I honestly don't know anymore." Hotch said as he watched Violet laugh at something Spencer was saying.

"Don't you guys think we should at least try to find out what is going on with her?" The dark man insisted.

"We've already tried that," JJ said, irritated, "She keeps spouting this bullshit lie about her being completely fine. I don't know what to do anymore" Hotch turned to look at the blonde, surprised that she was cursing.

"What if she is in trouble…what if something really bad is happening to her?" Morgan insisted.

"I'm pretty sure that's not the reason." Hotch said, attempting to dismiss Morgan's statement, and they realized Hotch clearly looked more disappointed than worried.

"Please don't tell me you're not worried about her?" He accused.

"Morgan, I can't spend my entire life chasing after her." Everyone looked at him, speechless; unable to believe Hotch was almost ready to give up on Emily. "It obviously isn't as bad as we think since she has been spending all her weekends god knows where and doing god knows what."

"Aaron, you don't know that for sure, don't say something you're going to regret." Dave interrupted.

"What am I supposed to say, Dave? Do you know the last time Emily spent quality time with Violet?" He questioned angrily. "Violet has been with me the past five weekends while she goes out and..." But, he stopped there, he wasn't sure if he could continue the words.

"Emily would never be capable of cheating on you..." Dave said confidently and angrily.

"I don't know what she's capable of anymore." the brunette man said sadly.

"Is this about Cruz?" Morgan suddenly questioned. "Is that why they've been working together so close lately?"

Hotch just shrugged, looking away and erasing the picture in his mind of Emily and Cruz together.

"She's not sleeping with Matt." JJ stated defensively. While she had initiated this discussion and as mad as she was at Emily, the one thing she knew for sure was that Emily would never dare to do something like that.

All three pair of eyes turned to look at her as if it was obvious she knew something they didn't.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Derek questioned, being the only one in the equation that didn't know about Emily's past with the Deputy Director.

"Look, I get that you're mad, Aaron., I really do" JJ said, emphasizing his name making him look at her in shock at the use of his first name.

"I'm mad at her, too, God, we haven't even spoken in weeks since we got into a fight recently." JJ swallowed at the memories of that day. "But, I know Emily, and I know Matt, and what happened with them in the past is over...and I can guarantee you he would never make another move on her as long as you're alive." The blonde said and stood up from the table walking away from them.

"Wait! what? Emily and Cruz?" Morgan said aghast.

"They used to date back during her Interpol days." Hotch finally explained.

"So, you think she is cheating." Morgan confirmed, agreeing there was something really weird about this entire situation.

"You don't know that for a fact. Aaron you cannot accuse someone without evidence, especially not the mother of your child" Dave warned.

"All I know is that since he started working for the FBI everything started changing…even her." The Section Chief said mimicking JJ's actions and leaving the table.

"You don't seriously think she is not cheating?" Morgan questioned incredulously.

"Derek, you always say Emily is like one of your sister's." Dave pointed out, warningly. "Would you think differently if it were Desiree or Sarah?"

Derek sat there thinking, and then he closed his eyes feeling ashamed; if Dave was so convinced Emily wasn't doing anything bad, it was for a reason, but then…what was really going on with the brunette?

A few days after the party, Emily walked into a busy bookstore looking around, her sunglasses still perched on her nose. She knew she was already running late, but Clyde had insisted it was a matter of life and death that she met them there, so she got there as fast as she could. As she made her way through the busy store, she headed to the back of the bookshelves just where she was supposed to go. She pretended she was wandering around looking at a long bookcase where the romantic novels were. She stopped suddenly where she saw a particular book out of place. Those were the instructions she was given, so she pulled out the book and pretended to be interested in reading it when she heard someone walk around on the other side of the long bookshelf.

"I'm not really sure what is more ironic, that we are in the middle of a thousand romance novels, or that this is probably exactly the kind of books you would buy if you were Lauren." Tsia said almost in a whisper.

"Tsia," Emily breathed feeling the urge to go around and pull her long-lost friend in a hug. Tsia Mosley was another of the members of the JTF- 12 that had been in charge of putting Doyle away. "How are you?" Emily asked unable to stop herself.

"Relieved that I made it all the way here without being shot." Tsia replied sardonically, and Emily just closed her eyes.

"Let's make this quick…I'm already running late for work." Emily pressed. On the other side of the bookshelf, Clyde selected another book, pretending to be reading as well.

"We just got an alert on our man." Clyde said discreetly.

"What kind if alert" Emily queried.

"A property purchase." Clyde explained looking around the busy bookstore.

"What?" Emily hissed, confused.

"A real state property in Lake Tahoe in the name of Gregory Prentiss." He explained making Emily gasp in shock.

"Wait, that's..."

"Your grandfather's cabin in Lake Tahoe where you used to spend winters." Tsia finished for her.

"I don't understand, that's a family property, it belongs to the Prentiss's so why was it for sale and how is that related?"

"When your grandfather died, the property was inherited by one of his sons…Wallace Prentiss." Clyde continued, and Emily shivered at the mention of the name; it wasn't a secret Emily had absolutely no contact with her family at all.

"I still don't understand why that is related."

"Because the property was purchased by Declan Doyle." Clyde informed her, and this time, Emily almost dropped the book she was holding…her heart starting to beat a hundred miles per hour.

"Did he find Declan?" she asked, her voice broken and terrified.

"No, we have been keeping surveillance on the boy, as far as we're concerned, Ian still believes his son is dead."

"So, he's using Declan's name as an alias?" Emily guessed.

"Why does he want your family's property so badly?" Tsia inquired.

"Well he obviously wants to intimidate her, he knows that property has special meaning to Emily."

"Or, he's trying to pull me into his fantasy." Emily added, placing the book back. "I have to go." She said suddenly, leaving them alone as Clyde tried to call after her, but before he could say anything, she was lost among the busy store.

Emily arrived at Quantico almost an hour later; she quickly rushed through the door only to find Matt Cruz and Director Kramer inside her office, along with a police officer and a Detective. All men turned around to face her as soon as she walked in.

"There she is." Cruz stated directing the man's attention to Emily.

"Emily, these are Detective Conway and Officer Dupps from the Washington D.C Police Department." Then, he turned to the men and said, "Gentlemen, this is our Counter-Terrorism Section Chief, Emily Prentiss." Emily shook their hands not fully sure what were they doing in her office.

"What's going on?" She asked as she placed her purse on her desk.

"Ma'am, we're here to notify you of an incident that occurred last night." Said Detective Conway, and from the look on his face she was pretty sure it was going to be bad news.

"Last night, we responded to a call in a Kent City suburb; we had a notification of a death that was declared a suicide by the Coroner's Office." Emily looked at them for a second not fully understanding what was going on.

"Miss Jackie Mantych was found dead at the scene." The officer informed her. Emily's mouth dropped open as her legs started shaking. Jackie was Emily's personal assistant and close friend; they had become very good friends in the past year given that both of their daughters were the same age.

"I don't understand..." She could hardly articulate the words. "There must be a mistake, Jackie would not, she just would not do that..." She stammered.

"The Medical Examiner from the Coroner's Office declared it to be a suicide because she hung herself."

"No, I just can't believe that…she wouldn't do that." Emily said feeling panic course through her veins.

"Ma'am, I know this is hard to digest, and I'm so sorry for your loss...if you need anything, please give us a call." Having said that, the officers gave her their business cards and left.

Emily stood there looking out the window of her office while Cruz escorted the officers out of the building. Tears rolled down her face, and she could feel herself shaking; she was almost a hundred percent sure this was Ian Doyle's movement, but she knew she had no way to prove it. She would bet anything if she were to request autopsy reports, the results most likely would state something different. Doyle could have used an injection of potassium and make it look like a suicide…this sounded like something Doyle would do for sure. The problem was, if she requested an autopsy report and attempted to investigate further into Jackie's death, she would have to explain a whole set of things she couldn't…hell, she couldn't even explain how she knew it wasn't a suicide.

A few hours later, she was working on a report and some other documents when her phone buzzed on her hip. She grabbed the phone only to realize she had a message from the number Doyle had been using to message her for the last six months. When she opened the message, she felt her heart shatter inside and her phone dropped to the floor from shock. It was a picture of Jackie and Emily leaving ballet practice after they had taken the girls a few weeks back. She closed her eyes and brought her hands to her face unable to control the sobs coming from her while she was breaking down.

Ian Doyle had killed Jackie to pressure her into doing what he demanded; she knew she couldn't wait until someone else ended in death as a collateral damage on Ian's vendetta against her. It had been a few weeks since she had last met with Doyle, and she had been waiting for him to just show up and take her, or have someone else kidnap her and take her to him. But, that wasn't how Doyle worked…he was used to having control over everything, he was all about power and making everyone do exactly what he wanted no matter what price, and he hadn't come to get her yet.

There was only one answer...he wanted her to go find him on her own, and now she knew exactly where he was, the same place she grew up spending the most wonderful winters of her childhood. That was why Ian had gotten the property. His plan was luring her into the cabin knowing full well the meaning that place had for her. She grabbed her purse and picked up her phone from the floor and headed out of her office without telling anyone anything.

She wasn't going to let more innocent people die because of her!

 _ **If you don't deal with your demons, they will deal with you, and it's gonna hurt. Nikki Sixx**_


	7. Chapter 7

**The Face of Love: Chapter Seven**

" _Those who forget the past are condemned to repeat It." ― Chuck Palahniuk_

Emily rode the cab from the airport to her destination; she gazed out the window as she watched the city pass by, a city she had not visited in years. Not for fun anyway…she remembered a few years ago when the team was called to a case near Lake Tahoe in Nevada. She had wanted to go and visit her grandfather's cabin for years, but she never did, and she simply didn't know why. She always had been the kind of person who ran away from the things, no, not because she was irresponsible, but throughout her life, she had realized there were things that were simply not worth her time and effort. It wasn't that Lake Tahoe particularly brought her bad memories, it was just that they were painful, and Emily Prentiss didn't cry, she had not allowed herself to cry in a very long time. She closed her eyes for a moment as fond memories filtered through her mind.

 _A seven-year-old Emily Prentiss was running around the forest filled with snow, old strong man behind her. They had been out to find the perfect Christmas tree, and Emily was happy and carefree and without a troubled thought in her mind. This was probably one of her favorite seasons of the year maybe because it was literally one of the very few times in her life she saw her entire family together enjoying each other's company. Even the ambassador who always traveled around the world and was always too busy to be worried about Emily's well-being, was also there. Of course, Emily didn't mind when her mother was away, for her usually meant she could be herself; she couldn't even count the number of babysitters she'd had up to this point. But, being in this particular place was just about her favorite thing to do and place to be. She always enjoyed the cold weather and snow. Her grandfather's cabin was absolutely gorgeous, and they spent almost every day hunting and playing outside in the snow, only to go back home, light a fire, and then, she would listen to her grandfather tell her the most amazing stories she had ever heard. The old man called to her as he dragged the very tall white spruce around the cabin._

" _Piccola, not so fast, wait for grandpa!" Gregory Prentiss called the girl, and she turned around and ran back toward him…her big dark brown eyes focusing on his as she smiled, her alabaster skin flushed from the cold._

" _Come on, Nonno." Seven-year-old Emily called, laughing. "We still have to set up the Christmas tree." She yelled with excitement._

 _Emily rushed inside the cabin and ran up the stairs as Gregory Prentiss laughed, bringing the beautiful tree inside the house and setting it by the fireplace. In a few seconds, she came running down the stairs with an angel figurine made of carved wood, one that Gregory Prentiss carved for her when she was only two years old._

" _I found it, Nonno." Emily said happily, handing the angel to her grandfather. He smiled and lifted the little girl up, so she could place the angel on the top of the tree._

Emily opened her eyes again as the taxi came to a stop, and she looked out the window at the beautiful cabin that she used to dream about. Now, that same place seemed terrifying and frightening; she paid the cab driver and stepped out of the cab walking up the long driveway, gradually becoming aware of the many black trucks around the house. Two tall men dressed in black met her both reaching for their guns. Suddenly, the front door of the cabin opened, and Doyle called them.

"Gentiluomo metti via le pistole, è la nostra ospite d'onore." He called out to the guards to let her in. Emily just watched him stand there smiling at her like she had never seen him smile.

"Hello, love." He smiled as he made his way down the steps to meet her, "Welcome home."

"You wanted me back, right? Here I am." She said through clenched teeth.

Emily knew if she was going to do this, she would have to absolutely never show him any fear. Ian just smiled and placed his hand on her back feeling her tense as she followed him inside.

Emily stepped in looking around the house with a small flashback running through her mind of her seven-year-old-self running around the house.

"I tried to make sure the house was exactly the way your grandfather left it." Doyle told her proudly.

"Why are you doing this here? Is this your way of punishing me?" She glared irritated.

"Emily, love, I want nothing except to make you the happiest woman alive." He said looking at her in adoration…she just smirked.

"Making me come to this cabin against my will is a way to prove your love for me?" She queried, looking at him with venom in her eyes.

"Oh no, love, there you're wrong, I didn't make you come; I could have taken you off the street and brought you here by force at any time." He assured her. "It was you who decided to come here all on your own, and that only proves to me that maybe you still love me, after all." Emily smirked angrily at him...she knew she needed to control her anger if she wanted to be able to take him down at some point.

"I didn't come here on my own, you killed someone to blackmail me into coming here...that's not love, that's torture, Ian." She barked.

"Oh, come on, Emily, you killed my son, someone had to pay for that."

"Jackie was innocent, Ian, she did nothing to you."

"So was Declan and that didn't stop you from killing him!" He warned. "Now, let's take a small tour around the house, shall we?" He grabbed her hand and tried to kiss her cheek, but she recoiled looking away from him.

"Your room is upstairs, of course, until you're ready to stay with me in my bed." he said while caressing her cheek and making her shiver in disgust.

"Why did you bring me here to this house?" She asked maintaining her glare and as much distance as she could away from him. "Is this part of your demented obsession with me?"

"Come on, love, you're giving me zero credit here." He replied, hurt. "When we were in Tuscany together you told me once that your favorite childhood memories were in this house." He explained. "I just wanted to make you happy again, I want to make you love me again."

"You really are deranged!" She exclaimed sadly, unable to believe what he was doing; all she could do was keep repeating to herself that she was doing this to save her kids. She was doing this for Violet and Jack; and for Aaron.

"Why don't I take you upstairs…" Doyle smiled pleasantly showing her the way upstairs.

She followed him, hesitant because part of her was still terrified he was just playing with her and any minute he would snap and torture her, or maybe even kill her; she truly wasn't sure what he was capable of anymore. Emily had no hope, of course…she knew very well that she was going to die, and she had already prepared for that. She only hoped Aaron could forgive her and make the children happy and safe in her memory.

When Emily walked into the one of the large suites at the cabin, she was almost speechless. The room had been designed with such similar tastes as hers; she would have picked many of the furnishings in the room. The king-size canopy bed made of dark cherry wood was in an antique design. The fluffy, elegant bedding and mounds of pillows were exactly the way she liked. There was a small fireplace which gave the room a cozy feel; the large windows looked toward the mountains with one of the most beautiful views she had ever seen; it also contained a large bookcase with almost every book Emily had ever read, and lastly, a very elegant, expensive-looking arm chair. The room was so like the one she had shared with Ian when she was in Tuscany with him as Lauren, she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"I'll leave you to yourself, so you can get comfortable, love." Ian said politely. "You have everything you need in this room, but if you want anything else, just tell me and it's yours." He stood at the doorframe looking at her.

"One more thing, I left you a dress on the bed for you to wear for dinner tonight, it's just your taste." He smiled smoothly leaving and closing the door.

She spotted the dress lying on the bed, a red strapless, floor length gown, with a pair of red 4-inch heels, and next to that was a long velvet box that held a very expensive diamond necklace. Emily was certain it was the same price as the cabin if not more. This wasn't exactly the kind of welcome she had expected from him; for some reason, she had expected him to lock her in a basement and submit her to some twisted kind of torture and abuse, or for him to shoot her as soon as she arrived. God, she didn't even know how many tragic scenarios she had played out in her head about the kind of welcome that was awaiting her, all of them as gory and violent as the next one. But, she wasn't expecting any of this. It was then she realized that maybe just maybe he truly wanted her back in his life, he truly did expect for her to be his lover again and share a life with him. For some reason, that possibility scared her even more than him actually killing her in the most violent possible way.

Emily looked around the room once again at the elegant and expensive furniture, the large walk-in closet already filled with very expensive designer clothes for a female, another small closet filled with many shoes. As Emily would never have imagined, all the same style and colors she would have worn. She spotted the dresser that also held an antique jewelry holder. Emily walked over to the dresser touching with her fingertips, and then she opened the jewelry box...just as she had imagined, it was full of expensive diamonds, antique and gold jewelry, portraying the kind of life Emily would have had with her mother, with everything any other woman would have dreamed of, any day of their lives. She dropped on the bed looking around again, feeling emptier and more alone than ever in her life. She grabbed on the pillow on the perfectly soft bed and hugged it to her, breaking down for the very first time in a while and sobbing uncontrollably.

Meanwhile, back in D.C., Aaron was driving Violet back home; Emily had asked him earlier in the day to pick up Violet after school, claiming she had an emergency to take care of. She never explained what the emergency was, all he knew was that she had left the office very early during the day and never returned. Even Matt Cruz was trying to get in touch with her, but it seemed that whatever she was doing was keeping her from answering calls from anyone. He had tried calling her himself a few times to discuss when to drop Violet off, but she never answered his messages nor his calls.

The truth was she had been acting like this for a few weeks now; they already had a very rocky relationship after their divorce, but now, it seemed as if she was avoiding him completely, something that really bothered him. Just a few weeks ago, Aaron had spent the night with her…'really spent the night with her,' and they had made love and spent the entire night in each other's arms. He was shocked that night when he offered to take her home after having dinner after the case they had been working, and she said yes. At first, he really wanted to blame the liquor, but he knew that night between them was way more than a few glasses of alcohol. She had even admitted that she still loved him when they were in such an intimate moment dancing the same dance they had being doing since they started their relationship; he was hopeful. He really thought they would finally work their differences out and get back together, at least, that was what she had make him feel that night.

His heart was broken when he woke up the following morning to find her gone from the house. Not a message, not a note, nothing…she was in such a rush to leave before he woke up that she had taken a cab given that her car was still at Quantico. After that night, Emily talked to him very little, and when he attempted to speak to her, she just told him that night should never had happened. Then she went back to ignoring him and pretending nothing ever happened between them; the only thing they discussed was Violet.

So, when she called him that morning asking him to pick up Violet and watch her for a few hours after work, he couldn't say no. He could hear the desperation in her voice, although he wasn't even sure what had happened. He pulled up in front of the house calling her once again to tell her he was outside with their child, and once again her phone went straight to voicemail. He sighed, aggravated, and proceeded to get out of the car helping out his daughter who seemed tired and ready for bed. He rang the doorbell several times until he thought she had fallen asleep.

"Where's mommy?" Violet questioned also realizing no one was opening the door.

"I don't know, baby." Hotch responded using the key he still had to the house to let himself and Violet in.

"Emily, we're here..." He called, but the house was dark, and no one seemed to be there. Violet dropped her school bag on the floor and headed up the stairs in search of the brunette.

"Mommy, we're here." She called in her innocent little voice. "Where are you, mommy."

Hotch looked around the kitchen, Emily wasn't there either; it wasn't until he opened the door that led to the garage when he realized her car wasn't even at the house. Angrily, he shook his head and pulled out his phone again.

"Emily, where are you?" He proceeded to leave a voicemail. "It's late and Violet is tired...are you going to be home soon, or should I take Violet home with me for the night?" He hung up the phone the second Violet walked back in the kitchen looking sad and about to cry, it was way past her bedtime.

"Mommy isn't upstairs." she said with a trembling lip.

"I know, baby...she is just running a bit late." Hotch knelt in front of his daughter "Do you want daddy to help you take a shower and get ready for bed." He asked trying to comfort her.

"No, I'm tired, I just want my mommy." Violet cried as a few tears formed in her sweet, innocent eyes.

"I know, sweetheart, I know, come on, let's put you to bed." He said lifting her in his arms and taking her upstairs.

It took him a very long-time getting Violet to sleep given that she wanted her mother to tuck her in. Hotch was really angry at that moment...it was past ten and Emily wasn't home yet. If she was going to be out and about, she could have at least told him, so he could keep Violet with him for the night. He sighed, making his way out of his daughter's room and heading downstairs attempting to call her once again and getting her voicemail for the hundredth time that day.

Where in the hell was she at this time of night? What could be more important than being home with her daughter and putting her to bed? He walked back to the foyer to look out the front door to see if he could spot her car approaching the house. It was then when he realized there was an envelope on the table in the foyer next to the little basket they usually dropped the car keys and other stuff in. The letter was addressed to him, and he immediately recognized her smooth calligraphy.

 _Aaron:_

 _I am sorry I must do this with a letter; I just don't think I could do it facing you. I've reached a point in my life where I am simply not happy anymore. I never meant to hurt you, but this isn't what I want; maybe our relationship was a mistake to begin with. I'm really sorry and please understand I never wanted any of this. I've met someone else, someone who makes me happy, and I just have to do this for myself. I trust you will watch after Violet and Jack, you are such a good dad. I just can't do this anymore. I'm really so sorry._

 _Emily_

He finished reading the letter feeling with a sharp pain in his chest; this couldn't be happening, this had to be a bad dream. He went upstairs as quickly as he could and without waking his daughter up, he abruptly opened the door to the room they once shared as couple. His quick steps leading him to the drawers, where he noticed some of her clothes were gone, and so was one of her suitcases. He reached down to the safe, opening it frantically and realizing her passport was gone as well. He finally spotted the small velvet box on the bed and grabbed it, finding her engagement ring and wedding band inside. This could not be real; she would never do that to him, not to his kids, not to Violet.

"Goddam you, Emily." He shouted angrily, grabbing one of the portraits on the nightstand, a picture of their wedding, and tossing across the room angrily.

"How could you do this?" He said furiously, talking to the room. "How could you do this to me! What kind of mother walks on her daughter like that?" He finally felt the angry tears begin to fall down his cheeks.

He never would have guessed this would happen to him again, not after everything Haley had put him through. He had sworn the day Haley walked out on him that he would never, ever fall in love again, he would never allow anyone else close enough to hurt him. Goddam Emily Prentiss and everything she ever meant in his life. He wished he had never met her or laid his eyes on her. He would regret the day he fell in love with her the rest of his life. He wasn't sure how long he was awake thinking about everything and cursing all his memories with her, wishing none of them had ever happened. Eventually, he fell asleep with only one thing on his mind…no matter what he had to do, he would put her out of his heart…it was a promise to God and his sweet Violet.

 _ **Betrayal can be extremely painful, but it's up to you how much that pain damages you permanently. - Emily Gordon**_


	8. Chapter 8

**The Face of Love: Chapter Eight**

" _I guess that's just part of loving people: You have to give things up. Sometimes you even have to give them up."_ _―_ _Lauren Oliver_

Emily Prentiss sat in front of the large vanity set staring at her own reflection noting that her curly long hair, her long lashes with the exact amount of mascara, and the red lipstick offsetting her porcelain skin. She was wearing a very elegant white, embroidered sundress with a pair of diamond rings. She looked absolutely stunning…just like one of those perfect model pictures; the only thing that was out of the ordinary was the sadness in her eyes. Those beautiful dark eyes only showed pain and sorrow. Emily breathed in attempting to calm herself, remembering the last time she felt like this, so empty and heartbroken, while her memories quickly traveled back like a time warp.

 _Fifteen-year-old Emily Prentiss sat in front of the full-length mirror in the room that once belonged to her in the luxury mansion of her parents. She looked at her reflection in that white taffeta ball gown that had a beautifully beaded satin bodice and dramatically layered tulle skirt. She was wearing pearl earrings and a necklace that was way too expensive for anyone her age to be wearing, along with satin, elbow-length gloves which made her feel like one of those porcelain dolls on display. Finally, her perfectly styled hair held a tiara with beading to further make her feel like a porcelain doll._

 _Emily felt if she had the opportunity to run away from the embarrassment, she would do it; she couldn't believe her mother was making her do this against her will. But, for Elizabeth Prentiss it had never mattered what Emily wanted; all her mother cared about was her reputation as a sophisticated ambassador. Emily turned when she heard the door open to see the sixteen-year-old boy wearing a tuxedo and tie and remarked._

" _You look like the 'godfather." The younger girl stated laughingly._

" _And you look like real royalty...forget Princess Diana..." The boy joked as he came to sit on her bed pulling a flask out of his suit. He took a large drink and handed the flask to the smiling teen. Emily drank from the flask and turned to look at the mirror again._

" _You know what would be funny, if I was totally covered in blood and came downstairs like that." She opined, smiling evilly. "I would totally be the hero of the party, the Carrie of our time."_

" _You are deranged! "Matt said. "Come on, Em, just try to have fun tonight, not everything has to be such a tragedy." The boy huffed._

" _You actually look very beautiful." He said, coming close to her kissing her cheek. This is your party, it's your special night."_

" _Right! A special night where my mother is auctioning me off to society."_

" _It's a debutant ball, Em." Matt Cruz laughed at his friend's exaggerated statement._

" _Oh yeah, a ball where everyone is going to know I am officially open for business." Emily rolled her eyes, annoyed._

" _You have everything you can possibly want" Matt said looking at her and then around her room. "Any other girl would kill to have this lifestyle…what else do you want." The boy inquired taking another drink from the flask._

" _I want to be happy." She reiterated._

" _You have everything you need to be happy!" He laughed ironically. "You have money, you are easily the most popular girl at school, and your parents are important ambassadors...this life is a dream, Em."_

" _Yeah, you're right." The teen said sadly as her eyes filled with tears. "It's a cage made out of diamonds."_

Emily opened her eyes again, as her eyes started to burn. There really wasn't much difference between now and back when she was a teenager. All her life, she fought against her mother and everything her mother had ever required of her to escape the prison her house once was, only to be here many years later trapped in a world she was never sure she belonged to.

Just at that moment, Ian Doyle entered the room smiling at her and looking comfortable and smooth.

"Good morning, love?" He said as he walked in. "Did you sleep well?" He asked, stopping behind her and leaning forward to press a kiss on her cheek.

"You look marvelous" He said looking at her in the mirror.

"But, I think there's something missing." His coy smile making her feel nauseous. He pulled a jewelry box from his suit, opening it to reveal a delicately elegant sapphire necklace. Carefully taking it out of the box, he placed it around her neck, caressing her skin softly as he did. Emily fought the tears in her eyes again, just looking at him through the same mirror.

"There's a beautiful stone for an equally beautiful woman." This time, he placed a kiss near her lips and grabbed her hand pulling her up from the vanity. Emily slowly watched him as she faced him.

"Come on, love, the car is waiting." He announced.

"Where are we going?" She asked, feeling a knot form in her stomach.

"It's a surprise." Ian replied and took her hand leading her from the room.

Emily just followed him unable to say anything else; at this moment, nothing else mattered to her. The truth was Ian could do whatever he wanted with her and she wouldn't even care. She not only lost her kids and husband, she had also lost her entire soul, her desire to live and everything else…it was like suddenly she was dead inside.

Across the country in Washington D.C., Dave sat at the small kid's table. He couldn't believe the extraordinary Dave Rossi was now seated at a child's play table, and with a beaded necklace around his neck, playing tea party; he smirked as the little girl handed him one of the dolls and smiled, pleased with herself.

"Now, we have to feed the dolls." Violet stated as if it was something very important.

"Do we?' Dave asked amused.

"Mhhm, and you have to rock them to sleep, too." She pointed out handing him a small doll blanket.

JJ walked into the room and started laughing at the image in front of her. She wished she hadn't left her phone downstairs...this image right there was worth a million dollars for years of teasing the Italian man.

"Wow, Dave!" She said, laughing, "You really have gone soft, if only the team could see you."

"Hush!" Dave hissed, standing up from the table. "You tell anyone about this, and we will never be friends again." The older man placed the doll on the end of Violet's bed and turned around to face the little girl.

"Come on, Tesoro, let's give uncle Dave a break." He picked the girl up in his arms and said, "Let's go see what aunty JJ made us for dinner."

The three of them headed downstairs and walked into the kitchen where JJ took Violet and let Dave set the table.

Aaron had called Dave the night before when he had found Emily had abandoned them, and now, he and JJ were trying to help with Violet and supporting Aaron in whatever he needed. They could simply not believe what happened the night before. For JJ, this was still a bad dream, one she was hoping to wake up from soon and hug her best friend. Dave was more realistic…he knew he had to be the main support for Aaron and make sure he didn't lose his mind and reasoning. This kind of situation was always hard, he knew so by experience since he had been married and divorced three times. He knew exactly how Aaron was feeling, and the only thing he could do was be there for him and be an emotional support. So, here they were, he and JJ, watching Violet for Aaron at his house while Aaron arranged matters at the BAU and brought clothes and stuff from his apartment. It seemed to make more sense for Hotch to live at his own apartment and not face the emptiness his old house gave him, but it was the only house Violet had ever known, and he wanted to stay there for his daughter's sake. He still had not told their daughter about Emily…the truth was, he wasn't sure he could do it.

As they got comfortable in the kitchen, Hotch came through he door looking more tired and older than Dave had ever seen him. Dave knew exactly how much this was affecting his best friend; Hotch had been able to recover from his failed marriage with Haley, but he wasn't sure if he would be able to recover from this.

"Hey guys, thank you for staying here." He placed his briefcase on one of the kitchen stools at the same time Violet bounced from JJ's lap to her father's arms.

"Daddy!" Violet hugged him and clung to him. Aaron closed his eyes as he held Violet close.

"Hi, sweetheart." He said hugging her tightly.

"Daddy, when is mommy coming home?" Violet suddenly asked looking at her father with sad eyes. Hotch looked at Dave and then at JJ unable to say anything. He wasn't sure how he was going to tell Violet and Jack that Emily had left them.

"Hey, Vi, come here...why don't we finish dinner, and then we can build that puzzle." JJ said, reaching over in an attempt to take Violet from her dad's arms.

"But, I want to stay with daddy." She pouted.

"JJ, it's okay." Hotch said, holding Violet and looking at her. "How about you watch a movie while daddy showers, then I can help you build the puzzle." He suggested.

"Okay, daddy." Violet answered as she rested her head on her daddy's shoulder. Hotch turned to look at his two friends. "Thank you so much for doing this." He had no words to even explain how grateful he was feeling.

"Aaron, go shower...we can stay a little longer." Dave suggested kindly.

"Thank you, Dave, just five more minutes." Aaron said, heading out of the kitchen.

"Just take your time, don't worry." JJ added watching him go up the stairs. She turned to look at Dave with her eyes glistening while shaking her head.

"Tell me, what mother just leaves her child like that!?" She stated, angered.

"Jennifer, you don't know what motives she had." Dave cautioned.

"What motives, Dave?" She questioned angrily. "She literally had everything...the most kind and loving man, a perfect life, who leaves that to go be with someone else?"

"How do you know she's not in trouble, or something bad is happening to her?"

"Come on, Dave, don't be naïve." JJ yelled at him exasperated. "She left him a letter…she clearly is perfectly fine!"

"We don't know that." He said in a warning tone. "You call yourself a profiler, but you can't even pull one up for your best friend." He glared at her, and JJ just rolled her eyes.

"The only thing I know is that she left her daughter behind, that doesn't make any sense."

"None of it does, JJ." The older profiler explained. "Do you really know Emily? There is nothing she wouldn't do for those kids." Dave reminded her. "She's one of the most devoted mothers I've ever known...this isn't like the Emily we know."

"Honestly, I don't even know who she really is." Said JJ, leaving the kitchen and going to check on Violet.

Rossi closed his eyes tiredly. He knew everyone was going through a very rough time, especially Aaron, but Dave refused to believe that Emily would just take off and abandon his daughter and husband for no reason, especially not for another man. He was almost certain something bad was happening to her, and he was going to find out what no matter what he had to do…he couldn't let Aaron and the team lose hope in their friend and the closest thing he ever had to a daughter.

After he left Aaron's house, Dave headed back to Quantico. He had some paperwork he needed to complete from a few cases. Maybe he could investigate what was going on with Emily and maybe find leads or clues that could help him discover why she had left and where she had gone. He spent a few hours in his office focusing on the files he was working on, but he was really unable to concentrate on anything, he simply couldn't stop thinking about Emily. He had a bad feeling, he knew something was going on because he knew there was no way in the world Emily had left of her own free will.

Taking advantage of the fact that he was in Quantico, Dave headed to the eleventh floor where the Counter-Terrorism unit was located. The entire floor was quiet and solitary, and the only noises he could hear were a few computers nearby that had been left on. He slowly made his way to Emily's office hoping to find anything that could help him. Dave hated going through a friend's personal life, but maybe if he could profile Emily, he could really find out what happened with her.

Her office was just as neat if not more so than his own office, nothing seemed to be out of place. The large bookcase along one wall held her collection of books and a few awards she had received in her years with the F.B.I. Her desk was painstakingly in order, no files out of place or pens lying around where they didn't belong. There was a medium-size metal frame that held a picture of the Hotchner's that had been taken at a park somewhere. Emily and Aaron both were sitting on the grass with Emily resting against Hotch's chest, Violet on her lap, and Jack standing behind them hugging both. Everyone was wearing jeans and a red sweater. It was a beautiful picture, one of his favorites of the family; and also hanging from the picture frame was a small medal of St Joseph…Dave knew the religious meaning of that medal. He knew St Joseph was considered the protector of families and homes. It obviously had a special meaning to Emily if it was hanging around a picture of her family.

He continued checking through her desk drawers and her computer hoping to find anything that would lead them to find why Emily had left the way she did. He almost jumped out of the chair when the door opened, and Cruz entered the room looking at him with questioning eyes.

"What are you doing here?" Dave quickly jumped and asked the Deputy Director.

"I could ask the same for you, Agent Rossi." Matt glared back. "What are you doing here this late?'

"I'm picking something up for Agent Hotchner." He quickly lied, and by the look on Cruz's face, he knew very well the Deputy Director didn't believe a word he was saying.

"Right! How is Emily feeling?" Cruz asked not averting his gaze from Dave.

"Emily?" Dave quirked his eyebrows in confusion.

"I know she's been sick these past few days, I wanted to see if she needed anything, but she isn't really returning my calls." Cruz explained still scrutinizing the older profiler.

"I'm not really sure." Dave lied again for lack of anything else to say, he wasn't sure what Hotch was planning to tell the Bureau about Emily.

"Look, can you ask her to call me please, it's urgent." Cruz said worriedly. "I need her to sign some documents, and I have some important information to relay to her."

"What kind of information?" Dave questioned, narrowing his eyes at the Deputy Director.

"With all due respect, Agent Rossi, that's confidential information between Agent Prentiss and the Bureau." Matt lied.

"Look, Cruz, I'm not going to beat around the bush anymore, okay?" Dave stated standing up. "You know where Emily is, right?" He accused.

"What!?" Matt said, really surprised. "What are you talking about!?"

"Let's not fool around anymore, you know very well Emily left Hotch, now tell me where she is!" Dave had a very strong feeling Cruz knew exactly where Emily was.

"Wait, Emily left Agent Hotchner? When?" His face showed real surprise this time.

"Last night, she left a bogus note that she had found love with someone else." Dave said, walking toward Cruz. "I was here trying to find anything that could help explain why left like that."

"Oh God." Matt said closing his eyes.

"What?" Dave asked realizing the fear in Cruz's eyes. "What's going on?"

"She didn't leave him for someone else." Matt said, looking at Dave worriedly.

"She's in danger, and we need to find her as quickly as possible." Cruz rushed out of the office followed by a very concerned Dave Rossi.

 _ **Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a time, but it ain't goin' away.**_

 _ **-Elvis Presley**_


	9. Chapter 9

**The Face of Love: Chapter Nine**

 _Everything I was afraid of when I was growing up, I've become. I've taken on my nightmares, like the devil and the end of the world, and I've become those things._

 _Marilyn, Manson_

Emily stood there on the balcony of the large cabin; it was dark outside, and she could see the stars and the moon reflected across the lake. She had changed into a pair of comfortable pants and a wool sweater with a shawl around her shoulders. The view was absolutely, captively stunning, the kind of view that inspired calmness and peace. Yet, she felt trapped and lost, and it wasn't even about being there for Ian Doyle, not for the reason she thought at first…to be tortured until she was dead. No, she had discovered that wasn't exactly what Ian wanted; he was no longer interested in killing her and claiming revenge. He actually wanted her back, for God's sake; he was willing to do anything to gain her love back, and that truly terrify her.

He had not touched her at all, not even in an appropriate or inappropriate way. It wasn't like she wanted him to touch her as long as it was appropriate, no it wasn't even that. He hadn't forced her to sleep with him, nor had he even kissed her; he had only touched her in an affectionate way, such as holding her hand and caressing her cheek, or simply pressing a kiss to her forehead or cheek. Even when Ian did those things, it still made her quite uncomfortable, even with her knowing he would never force her to have sex or anything intimate against her will. A part of her was very grateful about that, the fact that he was being a gentleman and treating her very well.

However, that made her feel more violated than if he had actually raped her; no matter how soft and caring he was, she felt she was betraying the man she truly loved. The worst part of it all was that she knew very well that Ian was going to do everything in his power to try and win back her love. The truth was she simply couldn't feel anything ever again, it was like she had left her heart and soul back in D.C. with the man that would have her heart forever. She could only imagine the kind of nightmare her life would be from now on, living with someone she didn't love, sharing the same house and probably eventually the same bed with her heart always belonging to Aaron Hotchner until the day she died…next to a man she would never be able to love.

She heard the large sliding glass door from her room open, and she didn't bother to turn around since she knew very well who it was. She felt Ian's arms wrap around her arms, and she tensed up, wanting to recoil from his touch.

"It's beautiful out here, isn't it, love?" He said, holding her.

"Yes, it's amazing." She said with her eyes full of tears.

"All of this and more I'm willing to give you just to make you happy." Ian said softly turning her around to look at him.

"Tell me what you want, Emily?" I feel so much love for you that I would give you anything you want...anything, just name it." He pressed a quick kiss on her lips, but this time she did pull away, looking at him intensely.

"The only thing I want you cannot give to me." she answered sadly.

"Is this because you miss Violet? I can get Violet here if that's what you want, love." When he cupped her chin, Emily recoiled angrily.

"No, Ian! You said it was me you wanted. Violet isn't negotiable, do whatever you want to me, but if you touch Violet, if you even dare to go near her, I will destroy you myself!" Her shining, angry eyes looked away from him.

"I will not hurt Violet, I made you a promise and I'm a man of my word." He responded seriously, "I just want you to be happy, I want you to smile again, and just be... _Lauren_ again. I want to feel that again, that amazing love we once had." His cold thumb grazed her cheek, looking at her in adoration.

"I think I'm going to go lay down." Emily told him eager to leave his embrace, then turning around and walking back into the room. Doyle stood out there for a few more seconds and then he, too, followed Emily inside her room. She was siting on the bed looking lost in her thoughts, and he vowed he would make certain that no matter what he had to do, he would make her love him again.

"I should go so you can get some sleep, love." Doyle said as he stood in the middle of the room.

"Thank you." She responded without looking at him.

"Oh, I almost forgot…I'm going out tomorrow morning, I have business I need to take care of." Emily turned to look at him, surprised.

"How long are you going to be gone?" She asked, hoping she didn't look too curious.

"A few hours, maybe half of the morning," He replied, turning to look at her.

"Don't worry, I'll be back for dinner." Then he stood there watching her; seeing that her eyes were sparkling knowing it wasn't necessarily tears.

"I guess I should tell you that none of the phones in this house work." He gave her a cold look, and she could feel her heart starting to beat rapidly. Doyle came closer to her looking around the room and then at her with a grin of satisfaction plastered across his face.

"I'm not your fucking prisoner, Ian!" She barked. "You can't do this, isolate me and keep me locked up in a room forever."

"I'm not locking you up, love, you're free to move around anywhere you like in the cabin." Doyle clarified. "And you can go out with me, but other than that, you aren't to leave this house at all until I know your heart if fully mine again!"

"What are you going to do? Tie me to the bed like you did with Declan's mother?" Her anger was rising, and she knew if she antagonized him things could get really icy if she didn't calm down.

"Not unless you attempt murder, my child…if you ever get pregnant of course." He came close touching her cheek.

"I would rather die than bear your children!" The venom in her voice and eyes was very evident.

"I don't need to remind you that if you do anything stupid, it could cost someone else's life…do I?" His voice was hard and cold, and he grabbed her chin roughly forcing her to look at him.

"As long as you do what I say, nobody else needs to die, love."

"You're hurting me, Ian." Emily said angrily, as she tried to move away from his rough grip. Doyle finally let go of her, and Emily reached to rub her neck where it was beginning to bruise from his roughness.

"I'm sorry, love, I didn't mean to hurt you." He said, looking at her as if he was truly ashamed of his actions and words.

"Don't give me any reasons to do something I don't want to do." He came closer again and caressed her cheek softly leaning forward to kiss her lips only for her to recoil and look away in disgust.

"We could be so happy, Emily, it all depends on you, love."

"Good night, my sweet love." With that, he was gone leaving Emily standing there with frustrated tears rolling down her cheeks.

She had no hope of being able to notify either Clyde or Matt when she arrived there to let them know she was with him. She wouldn't do that, she wasn't going to risk their lives and get someone else killed. No, if she really wanted to take him down and be able to survive this, she needed to change strategies. If she was going to keep doing this, there was only one way out. She was going to be Lauren Reynolds again…she needed to gain Doyle's trust again.

She needed to do everything he wanted even if it meant sleeping with him, it was her only way of surviving this she knew if she kept resisting, he wasn't going to trust her. She needed to pretend she was truly interested in him again, and she really needed to focus on doing whatever he wanted. If he wanted Lauren back, she was going to be Lauren again...

Meanwhile, in D.C., back in the house she once loved, Aaron finished helping Violet shower and now was in his daughter's room helping her get dressed in her jammies, so he could tuck her in. He knew this was particularly hard for Violet to understand, and he was trying to do everything he possibly could to keep Violet safe and loved and to keep her mind away from her mother.

"Is mommy not coming home tonight either?" Violet asked as he was working on untangling and brushing her wet hair.

"I don't think so, baby." He responded feeling terribly sad.

"Then when?" Violets eyes shimmered again, and it broke his heart into pieces.

"I'm not sure, baby, mommy had to go away on a case." Aaron replied, hating to lie to his daughter but unable to break the little girl's heart.

"Can we call her then, I really miss mommy"

"Not right now, it's late and you need to sleep."

"But I want mommy here...I just want my mommy." Now, Violet was sniffling, and Aaron cursed Emily internally. He would never forgive her for leaving like this, and for causing so much pain to his precious girl.

"I know, Vi, I want mommy, too." He explained softly, "but you have to be a good girl for her and go to bed, okay?"

"Okay daddy" the little girl said sadly, making him feel even worst.

The ringing of his cellphone interrupted them, and he realized it was Dave.

"Hey, Dave what's going on?" he asked.

"Aaron, I need you to listen to me." Dave stated on the other end of the phone.

"Will is coming over to stay with Violet, and I need you to come to the BAU as soon as you can."

"Wait! What!? Why is Will coming? Violet is in bed, Dave, I can't just leave her like that."

"That's why Will is coming."

"Dave, what's going on? I can't just leave my daughter here with Will on the middle of the night; can't this wait until tomorrow?"

"I don't think so; the rest of the team is headed here now."

"Why? Dave, if this is about a case, I'm not leaving right now." Aaron said, offended that they were asking him to leave his daughter alone to go solve a case. "I'm sure Cruz can find someone to go for me."

"Aaron, it's about Emily, just please get here as soon as you can." The older profiler hung up and turned to look at Matt Cruz in shock; he still couldn't believe what he had heard. He could only hope they got to Emily in time before it was too late.

Aaron hung up the phone and at the same time the doorbell rang; he picked Violet up in his arms and made his way downstairs.

"Is that mommy?" Violet asked, tiredly rubbing her eyes with her little fists.

"It's Uncle Will, sweetheart." He responded, kissing his daughter's velvety cheek and opening the door to reveal Will LaMontangue

"Will, what's going on?" He asked letting in the blonde man.

"Hey Aaron, listen I'm not really sure…JJ told me to come straight here and stay with Violet."

"Where are Henry and Lucas?" He questioned.

"With JJ's mother, she figured you might want Violet to just stay at her own home since she doesn't know long y'all are going to be gone," Will said as he took Violet from his father's arms.

"Thanks for coming, Will, I'll call my mother, too, and she can come stay with Violet for the rest of the night." Hotch said, taking his suit jacket and putting it on.

"Sweetheart, daddy has to go back to work for a little bit, but Uncle Will is going to stay until Nana gets here." He explained.

Violet seemed to consider this and frowned, but she was way too tired to argue, so she just looked at him intensely, such an Emily quirk. Violet was more like her mother with each passing day.

"That was quick." Will said as Violet settled on his chest; he lightly rubbed her back to soothe her.

"Yeah, she's tired and cranky." Hotch pointed out, smirking and kissing his daughter's cheek. "Normally, she argues with me until I don't even know what I wanted her to do in the first place."

"Sound's a lot like Emily" Will pointed out, then he felt bad for mentioning her, but Hotch just smiled sadly and turned to leave.

When he arrived at Quantico almost half an hour later, everything was dark except for a few lights coming from his office, Derek's office, and the conference room. He headed that way knowing full well the team was already there.

He stepped inside the conference room and was surprised to see the entire team sitting there, including Garcia and Cruz; but, what really shocked him was the presence of Clyde Easter. He had met Easter briefly on a few cases he had worked in the past; he was also Emily's close friend, and he had also worked with his ex-wife around the time she worked for Interpol.

"What's going on?" He asked confused, looking around at everyone. Garcia seemed like she had been crying, JJ was close to having tears spilling down her cheeks. Derek's worried frown was just as obvious as the one Spencer had, and Dave seemed lost in thought. Cruz was looking at something on his computer screen, and Clyde was standing by their presentation board.

"Agent Hotchner, why don't you sit down, please." Clyde instructed.

"Just tell me what's the matter." Hotch demanded.

"Agent Hotchner, please sit down." Cruz looked at him with a look he could only describe as worried and angry.

Hotch finally sank down into one of the chairs looking around at his team again. They obviously either knew what was going on, or they had a suspicion something really bad was happening. Clyde turned the board on and a few pictures started appearing on the screen, the first one being a picture of a Naval base in Afghanistan.

"Eight years ago, Interpol and the CIA worked together on a task force called JTF-12." Images flew around the screen from different security threat groups Hotch had heard off.

"I heard about them, they were profiling terrorists, right?" Asked Dave, to which Clyde nodded as he continued to show pictures on the screen.

"Our biggest security treat group was called Valhalla, a European team who had extensive training, and the kind of weapons they were trafficking could destroy an entire country." Clyde turned to look at the team and then focused on Hotch, who was staring at the screen in confusion.

"Our main target was Ian Doyle, the leader of the group and one of the biggest terrorists Interpol and the CIA had ever investigated." Easter finished.

"So, if Interpol captured this guy, I don't understand what that has to do with the BAU." Hotch questioned still staring at the screen.

"Because the mission that took him down consisted of a group of highly-trained profilers, whose main job was to infiltrate into Doyle's life and look for information that could help facilitate his capture." Matt explained, looking at the team passing a file around the big round table.

"That doesn't answer why would this case be important to the BAU?" Derek queried, annoyed that they didn't get straight to the point. Matt and Clyde exchanged worried looks and Clyde spoke again, looking at Hotch directly.

"Emily was one of the undercover agents working this mission." A picture of Emily popped on the screen, but she looked so different…her hair was brown, and she looked nothing like the Emily he knew. She was wearing an expensive cashmere sweater and was holding a purple freesia on her hands.

Hotch knew Emily had worked a few undercover missions in her past; he never really questioned the nature of those missions or what she had done. He knew from years of experience that some of those missions contained highly-sensitive information, and sometimes the agents were put in very uncomfortable positions, he never wanted to force Emily to tell her anything she truly didn't want to.

"So, she was undercover working on Doyle's case...why did she never mention any of this to anyone?" David asked with a furrowed brow.

"Interpol uses a skill other countries don't...infiltration." Clyde said looking at them as their eyes went wide.

"Emily assumed the identity of Lauren Reynolds in order to get intel on Valhalla...she basically played the role of another weapons dealer."

"How close did she get to Doyle?" Hotch asked, feeling anger bubble inside him.

"We had a full background on Doyle and his information included relationships...Emily was his type she basically make him fall for her." Matt answered, watching as Hotch's eyes grew darker and angrier.

"I still don't follow why Emily's dark past and this case are related to the BAU today." Hotch glared…the more he knew about Emily, the more he realized maybe she wasn't the person he thought she was.

"Ian Doyle escaped prison over six months ago." Clyde finally said as he watched the surprise and horror in the team eyes.

"He is after everyone that put him away, and he won't rest until they are all dead." Matt said looking Hotch directly in the eyes. He knew Hotch was angry about everything he was hearing, but he needed to understand this was about saving Emily.

"That explains her behavior these past six months." Rossi stated. "He has been after her all this time."

"She didn't run away with another man." Matt's eyes focused on Hotch with a look of horror.

"He has her..." Hotch finished feeling his heart clench and the air leave his lungs.

 _ **Denial helps us to pace our feelings of grief. -There is a grace in denial. It is nature's way of letting in only as much as we can handle.**_

 _ **-Elisabeth Kubler-Ross**_


	10. Chapter 10

_**The Fa**_ _ **ce of Love: Chapter Ten**_

" _The idea of evil is always subject to denial as a coping mechanism."_

 _\- John Bradshaw_

Hotch knew Emily had worked a few undercover missions in her past; he never really questioned the nature of those missions or what she had done because he knew from years of experience that some of those missions contained highly-sensitive information often putting the agents in very uncomfortable positions, and he never wanted to force Emily to tell him anything she truly didn't want to.

"So, she was undercover working on Doyle's case...why did she never mention any of this to anyone?" David asked with a furrowed brow.

"Interpol uses a skill other countries usually don't...infiltration." Clyde said looking at them as their eyes went wide.

"Emily assumed the identity of Lauren Reynolds in order to get intel on Valhalla...she basically played the role of another weapons dealer."

"How close did she get to Doyle?" Hotch asked, feeling anger and jealousy bubble inside him.

"Well, we had a full background on Doyle, and his information included relationships, what he liked and what he didn't...Emily was his type." Matt answered, watching as Hotch's eyes grew darker and angrier.

"I still don't follow why Emily's dark past and this case are related to the BAU today." Hotch glared…the more he knew about Emily, the more he realized that maybe she wasn't the person he thought she was.

"Ian Doyle escaped prison over six months ago." Clyde finally said as he watched the surprise and horror in the team's eyes.

"He is after everyone that put him away, and he won't rest until they are all dead." Matt said looking Hotch directly in the eyes. He knew Hotch was angry about everything he was hearing, but he needed to understand this was about saving Emily.

"That explains her behavior these past six months." Rossi stated. "He has been after her all this time."

"She didn't run away with another man..." Matt's eyes focused on Hotch with a look of horror. "…He has her." Hotch finished, feeling his heart clench and the air leave his lungs.

"Oh my God." Penelope hissed while covering her mouth." The entire team was in shock because they had no idea their best friend was in trouble; they all just thought she simply had run away with another man.

"Doyle has been taunting her for six months...he first made contact with her when he got out of prison." Matt explained.

"Why didn't she say anything, why did she just go out on her own after he contacted her; if something happens to her..." JJ said, shaking her head as her eyes filled with tears.

"That doesn't make any sense, why didn't she talk to anyone after he contacted her...we're her family, we would have helped." Spencer said horrified looking at the screen images.

"Because she couldn't...Doyle would have taken down all of us...he was seeking revenge...Emily gave him what he wanted to stop him from hurting anyone." Matt admitted.

"Gave him what he wanted?" Rossi questioned, frustrated. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"She divorced Agent Hotchner, and after that, she went after him on her own..." Clyde told Rossi then turned to look at Hotch who still had not uttered a single word.

"So, all this time you knew she was in trouble, that we all were, that he was after her, and you just sat there doing nothing about it!"Said Hotch "That's obstruction of justice." The look on his face quickly changed from disappointment, shock, fear and now anger.

"We couldn't tell anyone, Agent Hotchner." Clyde attempted to get him to calm down

"She is my wife!" He yelled and banged his fist on the table as he stood up and bored his eyes into Clyde Easter's eyes. "I demand to know why I wasn't informed that a terrorist was after my wife, my family and my team!" Hotch barked.

"Agent Hotchner, calm down." Matt Cruz said raising his voice slightly.

"You!" Hotch pointed to Cruz moving closer to him, "This is your fault, you didn't tell anyone simply because you couldn't stand her not being under your control. YOU are a coward!" His face inches from Cruz now, both men stared at one other in a dance of dominance trying to gain power and control over the other.

"This isn't about you, Agent Hotchner." Matt said not at all intimidated by his glare. "Your jealousy and insecurity have nothing to do with the privacy of this case."

"Agents, enough!" Clyde shouted, standing between both of them before either of them could say anything else. Rossi and Derek had already stood up from the table and were waiting to take any necessary action to prevent the two men from getting into a fight.

"I hope you both understand this isn't a competition for her love." Clyde continued in an angry tone. "This is about saving Emily and nothing else."

"He's right," Derek said assuming charge as the Unit Chief. "We need to focus on bringing her home, we could start by profiling Doyle to find out where she is."

"We already know where she is." Matt stated.

"And you're still standing here instead of notifying every single law enforcement agency wherever she is...if something happens to her, I will destroy you, you can count on that." Hotch said as he felt his anger rising again.

"Agent Hotchner, I understand you're angry." Clyde intervened glaring at Hotch.

"But, your attitude isn't going to save her or make things better." His heated eyes focused on Clyde; Hotch was seething, and he wasn't sure how he was going to be able to control himself.

"Okay, that's enough, everyone." JJ stepped up, finally snapping out of her shock.

"We're wasting time...we need to get there before it's too late." Now, she felt terrible for judging her best friend and thinking the worst.

"Agent Jereau, it's not that easy, trust me." Clyde said. "If we haven't taken any action it's not because we don't want to save Emily; Doyle doesn't work alone, we would be putting her at more risk by going there and barging in."

"So, we just stand here doing nothing!" Morgan said incredulously.

"We can't put her life at risk, the longer we wait..." JJ said, unable to finish her words.

"He's not going to kill her right away." Clyde stated, and all eyes focused on him. "If he wanted her dead, she would already be dead, trust me."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Morgan asked even more angered.

"He is a power-assertive psychopath," Matt explained, "He doesn't play games, he plans everything to the last detail."

"Yeah, that last detail being her." Hotch exclaimed angrily, fighting the urge to beat the hell out of Matt. Not only had he hid secret important information about his wife, he also was calmly dealing with this situation…THAT was really pissing him off.

"Doyle doesn't want to kill Emily." Matt said as he turned around and faced Hotch again.

"Then why take her? You just said she was the one that put him away." Spencer, who had been awfully quiet up until this time, finally spoke with a distressed voice.

"Because he's in love with her, better yet, he's obsessed with her." Clyde told them.

"Emily is the only person he has ever loved or cared for; keeping her alive gives more meaning to his life than killing her."

"You just said he is a psychopath, he has no empathy." Hotch intervened looking at them.

"Which is why we must be careful," Clyde amended. "Emily isn't stupid, she knows what she's doing, she knows exactly the way to stop him and what he wants."

"Which is what?" Dave asked with a furrowed brow.

"Playing into his fantasy, making him think she loves him, too." Matt said, looking at them worriedly.

"Where is she?" Hotch finally asked, praying that nothing would happen to her; he knew she was strong, but even then, everyone has a breaking point.

"Lake Tahoe...a cabin somewhere."

"What?" A few of them exclaimed, confused.

"Doyle recently bought a property on Tahoe Vista, a cabin in front of the lake."

"Why Lake Tahoe, does that place have meaning to him?" JJ asked equally confused.

"No," Hotch answered, "It has meaning to Emily...it was her grandfather's."

"We'll get Doyle, that's a promise, Agent Hotchner," Clyde vowed, "But, we need to act with an abundance of caution, any reckless move will put Emily's life in danger."

"The jet is ready," Matt informed them, "We can continue briefing the case on the jet, we need to get moving."

Everyone left the round table and followed Clyde and Matt. The tension in the room was high, and everyone was angry as well. Everyone agreed on the same thing, they needed to save Emily, and they all had to work together in doing so. Hotch followed behind them, too, scrutinizing Clyde and Cruz. There was so much he needed to know, so many explanations he needed. He couldn't come to terms that they had known all along what was going on with Emily; hell, they even let her file for divorce.

He wasn't sure if he trusted them anymore, actually, he wasn't even sure he believed anything they were saying. None of this made sense, the worst part was he still couldn't believe Emily had left him to be with a terrorist even if it was to allegedly save her family and the team. This entire situation was very sketchy, he wasn't sure what to believe; the simple fact that Emily had slept with a terrorist for a profile made his stomach turn. As much as he loved her and wanted her safe, Hotch wasn't sure he could get past the fact that his wife had been in someone else's bed, that someone being a terrorist murderer.

Emily woke up the following morning with a bad headache and feeling emptier than ever. Every time she went to sleep, all she dreamed about was Violet and Aaron being hurt by Ian, and she woke up screaming in the middle of the night. The only thing that got her through was her conviction that she was doing this for them, to keep them safe. She was the only one who knew exactly what Ian was capable of doing when was angered. There was no way in hell she would ever risk the lives of her family, or her team for something she had started years ago.

This was a war she had started, nobody else had to pay for what she had done to put Ian Doyle away. She could only hope Ian was really focused on getting her back, and she knew if she followed his game and pretended to be just as in love with him as he with her, maybe she would have more possibilities for survival and maybe even take him down. She had finished dressing when there was a knock on her door. She was surprised since Ian had told her the night before he was going be out taking care of some business, but she told the person who was knocking to come in, just as she finished brushing her hair.

The housemaid, Francesca, walked in carrying a large tray with breakfast, coffee and juice for Emily.

"Good morning, signora, I have breakfast for you." She announced in her broken English.

"You didn't have to bring breakfast up here." Emily said, smiling at Francesca and feeling bad for her. "I could have eaten downstairs."

"Mestre Doyle order to bring you anything here, I am sorry signora." The old lady said, looking extremely uncomfortable as if she was in trouble.

"No, no, it's okay, I'm not mad, it's just…you don't need to this for me."

"I do what Mestre Doyle wants." The old lady said rapidly and then left without saying anything else. Emily shook her head angrily; she hated the fact that Doyle felt like the entire world had to serve him.

After Emily finished breakfast, she decided that it was maybe a good idea to walk around the lake in front of the cabin. If she was going to be here for a long time, she needed to clear her head and strategize, and she couldn't do that locked up in this room…she was starting to suffocate. She wrapped her shawl around her shoulders and headed downstairs running into a couple of service staff people and genuinely smiling at them.

She headed out the back door of the cabin sliding the glass door and stepping outside. The day was beautiful, the sun had risen almost completely, the breeze was soft, and she could smell the lake from the cabin. It was such a beautiful day outside, maybe a walk around the lake was just what she needed. Emily had not made it past Doyle's property when two of his security detail guys stopped her from going any further.

"Signora, you should go back inside, you cannot be here." The taller Irish man told her.

"Excuse me?" Emily queried, smirking and looking at them as if they were joking.

"Mr. Doyle gave strict orders not to let you out of the house." The other, younger man explained.

"You don't get to tell me what to do!" She barked angrily, moving past both clearly not intimidated by their roughness and height.

"Ma'am, please, go back inside...Doyle isn't going to like that you went out." One of the men again tried moving closer to her, taking the gun from his hip in an attempt to intimidate her.

"What are you going to do?" She bit back, "Kill me? Good luck with explaining that to your boss." She said sardonically and then continued on her way past them, heading out to the walk around the lake.

She knew she was probably going to piss off Ian Doyle…by leaving the house, but she couldn't stand being cooped up there for one more second. She needed air and to think, and she couldn't do that in a place that felt like a prison to her.

She made her way around the lake looking at the water and feeling so nostalgic because she couldn't stop thinking about Violet. All she wanted to do was hold her baby girl and kiss her, even if it was only for one last time. She hated that she had to live like this especially without being able to say goodbye to any of them. Even wanting to do that, Emily was sure none of them would have understood why she had done what she had done.

JJ was going to be so angry, just because Emily didn't confide in her past secrets; Morgan would hate her and think the worst of her; Garcia and Reid would probably be disappointed and look down at her, and Aaron...well, she couldn't think what his reaction was going to be, but she was certain he would never forgive her for doing what she did. Maybe Dave was the only one that would possibly understand her actions without judging her, but she wasn't going to risk his life to get him involved in her own personal mess.

She was walking around the lake when a young man approached her while flying a kite. He was with a few friends at a distance, and his kite had almost landed on Emily while they were playing around.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to hit you...the breeze had it out of control." He said, smiling at her…he was in his late twenties, and Emily just smiled at him.

"You didn't hit me, and no worries, it's okay."

"You are not from around here, are you?" The man asked as he looked at her expensive clothes and appearance.

"Kinda, I grew up here a very long time ago."

"That's amazing, this place is beautiful, we moved here about twelve months ago."

"Yes, there's something magic about this place."

"Well, I have to head back, my friends are waiting…nice to meet you."

"You, too." And with that, the man was gone. Emily smiled sadly watching as he ran back to his friends laughing. She only wished she could have her freedom again and be with her family and the people she really loved.

Suddenly, she heard screeching tires and turned to see one of Ian's trucks on the gravel facing the area of the lake where she was. Two armed men jumped out and grabbed her forcibly as she tried to free herself. Emily didn't want to start screaming and make a scene, but she wasn't going to let these idiots treat her like that. They dragged her back to the truck and suddenly, the truck door opened, and Ian came out glaring at her, looking angrier that she had ever seen.

"I thought I made it extremely clear you were not to leave the house." He barked as he grabbed her forcibly by the arm and pressed her against the truck.

"I'm not going to run away, Ian, that house is a freaking prison, you can't just isolate me and never let me out." She stated, fighting her tears…he wasn't going to see her cry!

"Who was that man?" Ian asked angrily, looking back toward the lake.

"What man?" Emily asked him.

"Don't play stupid! The one that was talking to you." He replied and slapped her on the face.

"I don't know who he is, what the hell is wrong with you?" She hissed attempting to free his grip on her arm.

"You're mine, I thought I had made that clear."

"You're insane, I wasn't doing anything, he just ran into me. He is just a some random young guy, Ian."

Suddenly, two of his other security guards dragged the man Emily had been talking with and held him in front of Doyle, as the man struggled trying to free himself and screaming for help

"Now, I said I didn't want any surprises, Emily." As he pulled out his gun and pointed to her, he asked her… "Do you want to die, is that what you want?"

"Go ahead and kill me...do it!" She dared him, "I'm not afraid of dying…GO AHEAD! Kill me!" She screamed, but Doyle just smirked releasing the security clip on his gun aiming it at the man and shooting him in front of her.

"Nooooo!" She screamed, horrified. "God, nooooo, stop...please. I can't do this anymore, just stop please!" Emily cried hysterically, falling to the ground and covering her face. She was stunned that he had killed someone else and had made her watch.

"Take her back home." Doyle instructed his guards. "And get rid of this asshole." He said with venom in his voice while heading back to his truck and not looking back.

Emily cried the entire time she was forced inside the truck and dragged back to the cabin. She wasn't sure she was going to be able to resist this any longer.

" _ **Wild animals never kill for sport. Man is the only one to whom the torture and death of his fellow-creatures is amusing in itself."**_ _ **―**_ _ **James Anthony Froude**_


	11. Chapter 11

_**The Face of Love: Chapter Eleven**_

 _There is sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love._

 _\- Washington Irving_

The team was settling down in a nearby hotel and gathering information around South Lake Tahoe. They weren't working close to the cabin where Doyle had Emily because they didn't want to draw attention to themselves; they had all understood that the quieter they were the better chance they had of saving Emily's life. They had gone through his entire profile and determined that Ian Doyle was a narcissistic psychopath who had learned all his criminal skills from his father who had never been a positive figure in Doyle's life. In fact, he had abandoned Doyle and his mother at an early age, making Ian control and kill people as an abandonment fear reaction.

He had learned that with power and control, he could get anything he wanted…money, friends, extravagance and ultimately women…except in Emily's case. They had learned that almost every single female in Doyle's life had been nothing but a game for him, another woman to his collection, then he would move on to the next one and the next one. In Emily's case, it wasn't that easy; she had played her undercover role as Lauren so well, it basically brought Ian to his knees. She literally had him eating from her hand. Emily, or "Lauren", could have asked anything of him, and he would have done it. So, when he was captured and sent to prison, then realized Lauren Reynolds wasn't real and he had been played, he wanted revenge in the most painful way. He spent seven years figuring out how to get back at Emily and the team that had put him away.

Of course, as soon as he escaped prison, he began his search for everyone on the JTF-12 team including Emily, and he vowed that when he found her, he would kill her, but Ian wanted her to suffer the same way he had, so he waited and watched her…he wanted the perfect plan to kill her. While doing that, he realized there was so much about Emily that reminded him of Lauren was. He watched her play with Jack and Violet in the park, swinging her daughter around, and laughing and smiling with her friends. He watched her interactions with Hotch, how her eyes lit up when she was around him, how she kissed him, how in love she was with him and her children, and he saw Lauren all over again. Maybe there was a part of Lauren remaining inside her. He knew they had made up the identity of Lauren Reynolds and her interest in Valhalla, but her personality, her traits, even the way she smiled, or the way she acted when she was angry, wasn't made up…that was all Lauren. Those things weren't made up, it was probably why it was so easy for her to trick him for two years pretending to be someone else.

"So, Emily was buying weapons for him." Morgan said, while looking at an image on the board of Emily and Doyle making a deal at the beginning of the mission.

"Initially she was." Clyde agreed. "The mission at first was just to make contact with him and get close enough to gain his trust and confidence..."

"Doyle was a trained terrorist; he wasn't just going to start spitting out information to anyone that first crossed his path..." Matt continued after Clyde's comments. "…Each one of the undercover agents focused on getting close to him, without bringing attention to themselves...he was attracted to Emily as soon as he saw her."

"So, she seduced him and then turned him in?" Morgan asked, starting to get uncomfortable with what his friend had done.

"Look at the pictures on the screen…she looks so comfortable."

"Essentially, yes, her job was to seduce him, but it wasn't as easy as you're putting it." Clyde warned. "She basically had to pretend she was interested in a relationship with him to really gain his trust."

"How long did she play him?" Dave asked out of curiosity.

"A year and a half, almost two years." Matt responded.

"She slept with him for two straight years!?" Hotch angrily asked. "And you want us to believe this was part of a mission…she obviously had something else going on, why else would she be with him for that long?" He was so mad he wanted to punch something and both Clyde and Matt saw that.

"Agent Hotchner, have you ever been undercover?" Clyde asked.

"No, but that doesn't mean I don't understand how this works." Hotch bit back bitterly.

"You don't…" Matt confirmed, "Being undercover is much more than just assuming a role, or personality, and hoping you don't get caught."

"She was with him for two years!" He voiced, more aggravated.

"If she had just pretended to seduce him and then attempt to do something, he would have killed her. This man is a lifelong terrorist; he has spent his entire life running away from the law, he knows exactly what to do to deceive them and when to know he is being played."

"That's right," Dave intervened, "If he was just used to having all these women at his feet, it would have been hard for Emily just to barge in and expect him to lose his mind over her."

"There had to be something else that made him trust her, to realize she really could be in his life." Spencer brought up.

"Well, there was..." Matt uttered. "He had a son, and the boy was crazy about her, she's always been great with kids."

Hotch stood there glaring at him. This entire thing was making him sick, never in his life would he ever have imagined Emily would sleep with a terrorist, let alone live with him for two years.

"Where is his son?" asked JJ.

"Declan Doyle's identity and whereabouts are on a need-to-know basis."

"Agent Cruz, the more information you withhold about this case, the more at risk Emily is...that's probably why Doyle has her."

"Doyle thinks his son is dead, but Declan is in under witness protective custody." Clyde said calmly, looking at Hotch… "However, Doyle thinks he was killed while he was in prison in an effort to make him confess to his crimes."

"And you don't think he spent all these years plotting a way to get back at her…as far as he's concerned, his son died because her."

"He doesn't care about his son." Matt spoke again. "The only thing he ever cared about was Emily...as I said, he is obsessed with her."

"And you still let her go to him knowing this information?" Hotch was getting so angry he could barely control himself.

"Emily went on her own."

"You never cared about her safety, just like you never did when you assigned her to this mission seven years ago." Hotch declared.

"She wanted to go on that mission, she was young, naïve and so eager to prove herself to me she would have done anything." Hotch lost it with that comment, and before anyone else could say anything, he jumped up and slammed Cruz against the evidence board.

"You fucking used her for your own convenience, you never cared for her, asshole, it was all about your mission."

"Get off me, you have no idea what you're talking about!" Cruz barked angrily, as he tried to push Hotch back.

"Gentlemen, stop." Clyde screamed, trying to separate the two men; Morgan and Dave jumped in, as well. Morgan stood in front of Hotch preventing him from going after Cruz again, and Dave and Easter held Cruz while they tried to push him back into the chair.

"This is about your ego...you can't stand the fact the she was once mine, too." Matt smirked, looking at Hotch with a challenging look.

"Matt, enough, go take a walk." Clyde instructed.

"This isn't about my ego." Hotch was seething and nothing was going to stop him now. "This is about her, you claim you loved her, but you let her risk her life to finish a war YOU started!"

"She went on that mission on her own, she seduced him on her own, I didn't tell her to do any of that." …was Cruz's response. "The truth is, Agent Hotchner, she had other men in her life, and that is something that's killing you."

"You son of a bitch!" This time Hotch was able to free himself from Morgan's grasp and almost punched Matt in the face. 

"Aaron, stop! You guys need to calm down." Dave screamed as he used himself as a shell to protect Cruz.

"Maybe she was yours at some point, maybe she was even Doyle's…" Hotch glared as he moved away to prevent being held by Morgan again.

"…But the truth is you never treated her the way she deserved to be treated, hell, even Doyle treated her better than you ever did." He continued with venom in his eyes. "When she realized what a piece of shit you were, she left you and her job, and you will never get over that."

"You are delirious!"

"Even when you started at the FBI, you still weren't over her, you would have done anything to get her back" Aaron barked angrily " But by then she realized she wasn't the same naive little girl that fell in love with you before; she was now married to a REAL man who loved and respected her, and that's your entire issue…YOU can't stand the fact that she doesn't love you anymore...you never deserved her, in the first place."

"And you do, Agent Hotchner?" Cruz questioned …you're sitting there believing she betrayed you when she was protecting you the entire time." Matt attempted to move to hit Hotch again…he had never been this angry.

"Enough everyone!" JJ shouted loudly, shaking because of how angry she was.

"Emily is being held prisoner by a terrorist who wants to kill her, and you two idiots are fighting for her like she was a fucking car being auctioned…none of you deserves her." With that, she stepped out of the office, furious.

Emily lay in the bed covered by a quilt; she wasn't even sure how long she had been crying, and all she knew was that she couldn't get the image of that young man out of her head. She had seen so many things throughout her career: mutilated bodies, murders, results of abuse, she probably had seen the worst of humanity. It didn't compare to what it was to actually watch someone being shot in front of her, and she knew very well it was all her fault.

How many more innocent people like that random man were going to end up dead as collateral damage. She wasn't even sure she could take Doyle down anymore: she was exhausted, she had been fighting this fight for six months. She was tired of hiding things, of living in fear, of wondering if that was her last day to live, or if someone else was going to end up dead. She was more tired every day, and truly didn't think she had the energy to fight him anymore; maybe it was better if he just killed her and ended her misery.

She was still covered with the quilt sniffling when Doyle walked into the bedroom she had been sleeping in the past few days. He watched Emily curled up in a ball and crying, and he slowly walked in and sat down on the bed next to her, reaching down to touch her hand, but she moved away and closed her eyes.

"Come on, love, I know you're angry. I'm sorry, okay? I just love you so much, I can't stand the idea of anyone else having you."

"That's love to you?" She snapped, standing up looking at him with her eyes shining with unshed tears. "You are fucking mental! What person that loves someone makes them watch another person being shot?" She inquired angrily.

"That fucking idiot? Oh, come on, Em, you didn't even know him." He exclaimed, smirking. "He was some random man you said you had never seen before!"

"That's the whole point." She sobbed. "He was innocent, he did nothing to you." Her tears were now falling down her cheeks, but she didn't care if he saw them anymore.

"He was bothering you. You are mine, Emily, and the sooner you understand that the better." He stated, attempting to wipe her tears, but she jerked away from his touch.

"I can't do this, Ian, I'm so tired of everything." She begged. "Just please, if you're going to kill me, just do it...end all this now and take your revenge, but please, just stop."

"Darling, I don't want to kill you, I've already told you, Emily, you have no idea how much I love you."

"This isn't love, Ian...this is a nightmare." She sobbed covering her face.

"Oh, love, don't cry, please." Ian drew closer to her, "Don't you understand that I'm doing all this for you? I am doing this because I love you, and I know one day you are going to see it to" He said caressing her cheek

"I am a patient man Emily, I can wait because I know that one day you are going to see how much you love me too love" He leaned down kissing her forehead and her lips.

"Stop, please…just kill me but stop" Emily begged, still crying, but he continued kissing her neck and shoulders.

"I love you so much, Emily."

Emily didn't even have the energy to fight him, so, she let him do what he wanted because she knew the more she resisted, the more people would end up dead. She would never forget the image of that man being shot, a random man who made the mistake of running into her, the same man that ended up with a bullet in his head just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. If Ian was capable of doing that, he would be capable of doing anything; Emily didn't even want to imagine what else he was willing to do in order to keep her.

But, what she was sure of was that if she angered him enough, he would go after someone she truly loved, and she knew she would never be able to live if she ever had to witness Violet or Aaron or Jack being shot in front of her, or anyone on the team for that matter. She would kill herself if that ever happened. Not that she would have much more energy to live after this, but she would hold on just to save Violet, Jack and her husband, of that she was sure. Emily was willing to sacrifice her own life and sanity to keep them alive and not bring them into this mess.

Ian left after he was finished with her, and she just lay there in bed unable to think. Ian had taken everything from her, first he had taken her husband and her marriage, then her friends and family, and now her dignity and will to live.

" _ **There is only one kind of shock worse than the totally unexpected: the expected for which one has refused to prepare."**_ _ **―**_ _ **Mary Renault,**_


	12. Chapter 13

_**The Face of Love: Chapter Twelve**_

 _There's a natural law of karma that vindictive people, who go out of their way to hurt others, will end up broke and alone._

 _-Sylvester Stallone_

The two Escalades drove around the industrial area of Stateline, Lake Tahoe, making several turns to avert attention from local authorities. It wasn't like they hadn't done this kind of business before, but they were in an unfamiliar area on American soil, so they were being extremely careful. Oisin O'Sullivan oversaw this transaction, and he knew very well it was one of the biggest ones they yet had attempted in the USA…over 25 million dollars' worth of merchandise including weapons, drugs and missiles. They had to be extremely careful with this operation since one small mistake could put everything in jeopardy, not to mention that the men handling this transaction were among Doyle's best and most trusted men.

"This is simple, men, we go in to deliver this merchandise, collect our money and we're gone." Liam said. Liam had been working with Doyle for over ten years and was his right-hand man.

"Aye," said Oisin, looking back at the vehicle behind them. "The boat is already there; we just pick up what is ours and we leave," His Irish accent accenting each of his words.

"I still don't understand why Ian didn't come with us to this exchange...it's one of our biggest hits yet." Said Oisin annoyed.

"Relax, caraid," Liam stated, using the term for friend. "He is in a mhí na meala." Oisin laughed as he pulled out a cigarette from his coat pocket.

"Honeymoon?" Oisin laughed sarcastically. "That nasty bitch doesn't deserve anything he's doing for her."

"Maybe not, but she's the one that keeps him happy at night." Both men started laughing, just as Liam pulled into a big building…as soon as both cars were in the warehouse, the door closed.

When they got out of the truck there were several men already waiting for them; Liam turned to face Oisin as he scanned around the warehouse where the transaction was taking place.

"Táim ag dul timpeall a dhéanamh cinnte nach bhfuil aon iontas ann." Liam told his partner whispering in his ear. ( _I am going to go look around to make sure there aren't any surprises.)_

"Aye," Oisin replied dropping the cigarette he had been smoking. He walked over to where the group of Arabic men were waiting for them.

"The boat is outside, everything is there." Oisin informed them. One of the men translated from English to Arabic for an older-looking man who seemed to be their leader.

The older man nodded and pointed toward a pile of wooden boxes stacked in the corner against the wall; he said something in rapid Arabic, then looked back at Oisin.

"Your money is there." The younger Arabic man told him.

"Is everything there?" Oisin inquired with a glare on his face.

"Nem ya sayidi biaism allah." The Arabic man vowed in the name if Allah.

" Hey Finn, Callum..." Oisin called to a few of the men with whom they had arrived "…Seiceáil na boscaí." ( _Check the boxes._ )

The men did as Oisin told them, at the same time Liam was walking back into the warehouse.

"Everything is clean...is the money ready?"

"Aye," responded one of the men, and they started loading the boxes into a trailer.

"It's been a pleasure doing business with you." Liam said to the Arabic men; the one who seemed to be the leader just smiled evilly.

"Likewise," he said and turned to the left, making Liam and everyone else turn, as well, to find out what was happening. Before they could react, the Arabic men began firing at them…Liam ran, trying to shield himself from the fire.

Liam wasn't sure who had started firing, but suddenly, at least ten more men had shown up, and the Irish men didn't have time to process or say anything else. Liam was able to get away, but everyone else was trapped inside the warehouse. He ran between the boats around the warehouse and managed to hide long enough to make a phone call.

"Doyle, it was a trap...we are pinned down." Liam said in rapid French just in case they were being tracked on their phones.

"What!?" Doyle exclaimed standing up from the table where he was having tea with Emily. "What happened, Liam?"

"They played us, Ian…everyone is down…even Oisin."

"Goddamit, I knew it was too good to be true!" Doyle barked as he slammed the phone across the wall breaking it in pieces.

Emily, who had been siting in a chair across from Doyle carefully listening to their conversation, turned to look at Doyle pretending to be interested in his business.

"Ce qui se passé, Ian?" She stood up and came to place her hand on his shoulder making him think she was worried. ( _What happened, Ian?_ )

"Amour, ils ont tué mes hommes c'était un clochard." He responded, focusing on her. _(Love, they killed my men… it was a trap.)_

"What are you going to do, you said this was a very big transaction?"

"It was...we lost everything. I need to go, love." He said, caressing her cheek and kissing her lips.

His ability to change from being extremely sweet to a complete psychopath in a matter of seconds was what terrified Emily. She wasn't sure how much longer she had left, or how long he was going to let her live, but she had to do everything in her power to keep Doyle distracted and interested in her.

"Let me go with you." She said looking at him.

"No, I can't risk your life, love. I am a warrior, I have to do this alone." He replied and kissed her forehead, leaving.

Emily sat there watching him leave the cabin getting into a different vehicle with two men. She had been snooping around Doyle's transactions and conversations with all his men; something that wasn't difficult due to her extensive knowledge of linguistics. She knew exactly where they were going today, what kind of transaction they were involved in and when it was going to transpire. This was a big transaction for Doyle, not only financially, but also because his army had been affected.

Emily knew that at least eight of his men had died there, including one of his right-hand men…this could only mean either one of his partners had betrayed him for money along with the Arabs, or the mission had been stopped by the authorities which meant there was a big possibility the team already knew of her whereabouts. She had to remain strong even if it was for a just a little longer. Emily knew if the team wasn't the one stopping Doyle's deal, whomever had, had killed a good part of his strongest men which meant they had now greatly debilitated his organization.

As soon as the shots were fired in the warehouse, and the field of vision cleared, several law enforcement officers and members of the SWAT team approached them carefully. What Doyle's men didn't know at the time was the men who had been involved in the transaction representing the Arabic Mafia were undercover agents set up by the FBI and Interpol in an attempt to debilitate his army. Oisin just stood there as the agents cuffed him…he could not believe they had been set up.

"Hotch, they're all down, man." Morgan said as he, Clyde and Dave quickly approached him.

"Take him into custody…" Hotch pointed to Oisin, "…we'll make him talk."

"I won't tell you anything, you piece of shit!" Said Oisin, barking angrily as two SWAT agents held him. Matt turned and punched him forcefully in the stomach, making Oisin sputter blood.

"You WILL tell us exactly what we need to know and how many more men your boss is working with."

They cleared the warehouse leaving only the criminal investigators and the Coroner's Office personnel who had arrived to pick up the bodies. The team had received a tip from an anonymous person about the deal that was about to take place in the warehouse. They had managed to intercept the Arabic Mafia dealers and replace them during the deal. The purpose of the mission was to take down as many men working for Doyle as they could to weaken his resources and rescue Emily without putting her at risk.

As they entered the hotel conference room in which they had been working, they saw JJ on the phone, with Reid setting up a geographical profile that could lead them to Ian's next movement. JJ turned around still on the phone and saw the team coming toward them.

"Hold on, Garcia, I'm putting you on speaker, they just walked in."

"What's going on, Garcia?" Hotch asked as everyone gathered around the table that now held the phone.

"Okay, so…I ran a search for the name of our man in custody, and he's creepy weepy...Oisin O'Sullivan's entire life has revolved around Doyle; I mean, he worshiped Doyle and everything he stood for…here's the most sinister thing…Doyle has constantly humiliated the man making his existence a living hell."

"So, why is he still working for him?" Morgan asked looking at the board.

"Maybe he idolizes Doyle?" JJ opined. "He does what Doyle wants because it gives him direction and a purpose in his life."

"So, no matter what we do to him, he won't give up Doyle?" Clyde said, running a hand through his hair in an exasperated manner.

"Not necessarily; statistically, 36% of humans who idolize a criminal have suffered some type of psychological trauma. Anxiety, depression, high stress levels, poor body image, isolation, and obsessive-compulsive behaviors: all of these have been linked to an idolatry or worship syndrome because the person's energy is focused entirely on someone who won't recognize their merits for what they are doing to please them." Reid interjected, speaking very rapidly.

"Reid..." Hotch said, reaching his palm out in an attempt to stop the genius so he would get straight to the point.

"Right, right" he said blushing slightly. "If we shatter the image he has of Doyle, he should talk to us as a revenge for what Doyle has put him through."

"Dave, you and Morgan head to the detention center and interrogate on O'Sullivan; we need to break him, and we can use any information we get to hopefully determine what Doyle's next move is and how long we have. I don't think he's going to live at the cabin...we need to find out where he's going next."

Dave and Morgan nodded and headed out of the hotel to interrogate Oisin, while the rest of the team stayed at the hotel trying to find a way to communicate with Emily without putting her at risk.

"I hate to say this, but what if we could use Declan to force Doyle to release Emily." Reid inquired, exhausted and rubbing his eyes; they had been up for almost twenty-four hours.

"We can't use a kid as a bargaining chip, what if he doesn't release her, then we would be putting not only Emily, but also a child at risk." JJ announced irritated

"Not if we know what we're doing; Doyle obviously works off of power and control, and if he realizes his son is still alive, he might fall for it." Hotch said thinking deeply.

"Absolutely not!" Clyde said, crossing his arms and looking at Hotch as if he was crazy.

"If you have a better idea, then by all means share it, but my priority is to rescue Emily, something you obviously don't care about."

"I was the one who brought you and your team here, this is my case and the FBI has no jurisdiction over it; you should consider yourself lucky I'm letting you and your team have access to this information." Clyde laughed sarcastically at him.

"I don't give a damn about your jurisdiction, a federal agent is in danger because of you; if something happens to her, I will see it myself, that you spend the rest of your miserable days in a cell in Guantanamo." Hotch stated dangerously quiet.

"Agent Hotchner, you're asking me to break my oath and reveal confidential information I swore to protect."

"You also took an oath to protect your country against foreign enemies, do you have any idea the severity and consequences of withholding information that can potentially lead to the murder of a federal agent? And what will that do to your country? You could be charged with conspiracy and as an accessory to murder."

Clyde just stared at him shaking his head…it was clear to him that Hotchner was seeing everyone involved in this situation as potentially complicit in Doyle's revenge.

"Agent Hotchner, involving Declan at this point would be premature and even reckless. If Doyle knows we have his son, he could escalate and kill Emily instead."

"I don't understand." Hotch said confused.

"When we started this mission, we had no idea of the existence of Declan, so, when the North Korean and Islamic governments knew Doyle was in custody, they were ready to take any action necessary to make him speak..." Matt explained carefully; JJ, Hotch and Reid were still looking at him with furrowed brows.

"They would have tortured and killed the boy to make Doyle talk, or done thinks I don't even want to imagine"

"Who got Declan out without them finding out then?" Hotch asked with a furrowed brow.

"Emily…she managed to relocate him without anyone knowing, even our own government leaders would have used Declan as a pawn."

"So, she saved his life by putting him in protective custody." JJ said sadly, realizing something…

"Emily was with Doyle that long to protect the boy, she could have ended the mission as soon as she had the information they needed on Doyle, but she stayed...she was protecting Declan those two years." Her eyes were shining now, realizing that was so Emily…kind, compassionate and loving, even if it was for the son of a terrorist.

Hotch turned to look at JJ, and he could read in her eyes what she was thinking, the same as him…Emily's capacity to love was so immense she lived with a terrorist for two years to keep a little boy safe.

"We need to act and save her, every second we're wasting is a second she's suffering...if something happens to her...I'm not sure I will be able to survive it." He whispered so quietly they could barely hear him.

"We'll save her, you have my word on that." Matt vowed. "But, you need to trust that what we are doing is only to protect her and keep her safe."

"There is something else we can do, but it might be way to risky…" Clyde said suddenly.

"What?" Every set of eyes focused on him.

"Taking down his main partner and accomplice, Liam…we destroy Liam, he has nothing left, and we could use that moment to go in and get Emily." 

JJ's eyes grew wide as she listened to Clyde, and then she turned to Hotch with a questioning face. She wasn't completely sure that was a very good idea, in fact, it was possibly a very, very bad idea.

"No!, that would be reckless." Hotch said firmly. "By doing that, we will be putting a gun straight to her head."

"Maybe not, Liam is his right hand, without him, Doyle would feel exposed." Matt announced

"And it could distress him enough to kill her immediately."

"We're running out of time and options, Agent Hotchner, we've already eliminated more than half of his men, and as dangerous as it sounds, it might be our only choice."

Just at that moment, Morgan and Dave walked back into their working area, looking very distressed and worried.

"What's going on?" JJ and Reid asked at the same time.

"Doyle is planning on leaving the country with her." Dave said, as if he had seen a ghost.

"Did Oisin say where they were going?" Reid asked, aware of the reaction of everyone on the team.

"Somewhere in the Middle East or Australia; Doyle doesn't want to be found." Dave continued, making eye contact with his best friend.

"We have to get Liam." Matt stated very worriedly. "It's either taking the risk, or never seeing her again."

" _ **Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So, throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." — Mark Twain**_


	13. Chapter 14

_**The Face of Love: Chapter Thirteen**_

" _Our love was a two-person game. At least until one of us died, and the other became a murderer."_ _―_ _Dark Jar Tin Zoo_

"We're running out time and options, Agent Hotchner, we've already eliminated more than half his men, as dangerous as it sounds, it might be our only choice."

Just at that moment, Morgan and Dave walked back into their working area, looking very distressed and worried.

"What's going on?" JJ and Reid asked at the same time.

"Doyle is planning to leave the country with her." Dave said, as if he had seen a ghost.

"Did he say where they are going?" Reid asked, aware of the reactions of everyone on the team.

"Somewhere in the Middle East or Australia, Doyle doesn't want to be found." Dave continued making eye contact with his best friend.

"We have to get Liam." Matt stated, very worried. "It's either taking that risk or never seeing her again."

"We can't just kill a terrorist and expect them to do nothing!" Morgan said angrily.

"We aren't talking about killing him Agent Morgan." Clyde specified.

"We're just arresting him!" Cruz finished

"By illegal means!" Morgan emphasized.

"Easter, do you understand that this operation could result not only in Emily's death, but a possible war with a foreign terrorist" Hotch asked, looking at him intensely.

"You're not only asking me to put a federal agent and my wife's life at risk, but also the security of the country?" He questioned.

"Agent Hotchner…" Cruz intervened before Clyde spoke, "I really understand your concern and the risk we're taking; I authorized an investigation into a terrorist who not only escaped prison, but I failed to report it to the proper authorities. I'm risking my career as well, along with the integrity of the BAU…I'm perfectly aware of the severity of this action." Hotch just turned to glare at him severely.

"While we might not agree on anything regarding the past, or even the present, I think it's evident we both have an ultimate goal which is saving someone we deeply care about." The entire team turned to look at Hotch, expecting him to make a decision.

"I'm willing to risk everything I have and my career to save her." Matt added

"My question to you is…what are you willing to risk for her?"

"If we do this, if we're taking down Liam, we need to be closer to the cabin and Emily." Hotch said, closing his eyes…he didn't want to picture the image of Emily trapped inside the cabin.

"We'll get as many units as we can available to surround the area." Clyde agreed, "But we have to get act soon."

"So how do we get Liam?" JJ asked still feeling hesitant about this decision.

"Every night, Liam and some of the men working with Doyle, meet at Himmel House, a German bar outside the city." Matt said, "They usually meet there to discuss deals; if we have probable cause that he is making an illegal transaction, that's all we really need to formally arrest him."

"Then, he'll know it's us and proceed to kill Emily." Morgan said, more and more exasperated.

"No, he won't, Doyle thinks the operation we took down this morning was the Arab's work; Doyle thinks this is a war between the Arabs and his people."

"How do you know this?" Derek questioned.

"We've been continually surveilling him and his people, all the people he has talked to and work with." Clyde told them; Hotch just shook his head, irritated.

"I would appreciate it if, from now on, any information you have on Doyle and his men be shared with my team." It was clear that Hotch was irritated that Clyde was hiding this information from him.

"That's all you need to know, everything else you already do know." Clyde said crossing his arms.

"So, we follow Liam and just chase him down and arrest him?" Morgan asked surprised.

"And is going to be that easy? We just walk in and arrest him without them putting up a fight? Are you guys aware that seven people just died in that warehouse?" He questioned angrily, "And we're just supposed to arrest another man and expect them to do nothing?"

"Well, seven criminals if we are honest with ourselves." Matt said looking straight at Morgan. "And it wasn't us who killed them, it was the Arabs, we just used their information to break Oisin."

"Are you okay with this, Hotch? Is anyone else bothered by the fact that we started another battle with a terrorist group that can affect our country, or start a real war?"

"I wouldn't go that far. I'm sure Doyle has a lot of power, but not enough to start a war." Dave said calmly. "Derek if they had kidnapped Desiree or Sarah or your mother, would you still question the way we're going to approach this?"

"Morgan, you don't have to do this." Hotch told him sincerely. "If you want to leave, I understand, but I am doing this. If Emily dies there, Violet and I have nothing left." As Hotch made this statement, Morgan closed his eyes.

"I'd rather lose my job and everything that I ever worked for to try and save my daughter's mother than to live the rest of my life blaming myself for her death." 

"I think we're all agreed on something here." JJ stated, looking at all of them.

"We all want to save Emily, we've been arguing and disagreeing for the past 24 hours…if we're doing this, it's now or never." 

"Okay, I will do it I'm in." Morgan said suddenly, "But I will do it I'll take Liam down!" Everyone turned to look at him in surprise.

"No, Morgan," Hotch said, "This is my war, this is my wife."

"Then you go with rest of the team to the cabin and make sure you get her out." 

"I'll go with you." Cruz said, and both men headed out to take the SUV to follow Liam to the bar.

Meanwhile, the team gathered several squads surrounding the cabin and nearby areas. They were security surveillance vehicles, and they were trying to get as close as they could to the cabin hoping they would see Emily or anything that would give them any indication that she was alive.

Hotch was with Dave in one of the Tahoes just a few yards from the cabin; he was constantly looking at the cabin and at his phone. He knew very well this was a very risky operation, and that there were armed people guarding the cabin; he wanted to do undertake this operation with as little risk of losing lives as possible, but even he knew a lot of people would probably end up dead.

"You know you're making the right decision, right?" Dave questioned.

"All I really know is if this goes wrong, I'm not only risking my career, but also her life." 

"It's not your fault she's in there, if that's what you have on your mind."

"For six months, I sat there thinking my wife was cheating on me Dave, that she had betrayed me and everything we worked for, that she had even betrayed our daughter." His eyes looked lost, and Dave could see the pain in them.

"You can't blame yourself for that Aaron."

"I could have pushed her more to talk to me, to any of us...I can't even begin to imagine how alone she must have felt."

"Aaron, she decided to go there because she was trying to save her family and you. That is just who she is, and you know that."

"But, she could have told me!" He said angrily.

"Would you have?" Dave questioned, "If a terrorist was after your family, and her, would you have told Emily, Would you have told any of us?" Aaron didn't respond, he just sat there staring into space.

"You can't be angry at her for that, because I know you would have done exactly the same thing."

The response teams sat around the cabin for at least two hours before Morgan's frantic call to let them know that the operation had gone wrong. The Italian Mafia that was supposed to meet Liam at the bar became aware a police surveillance van was watching them. The mob believed it was Doyle who had attempted to set them up and had opened fire before Matt, Derek and the SWAT team made it inside the bar.

Liam was shot and killed, but both of the other guys working for Doyle had managed to run away. A second vehicle from Doyle's people managed to leave as well, and none other than Ian Doyle was riding in that vehicle as he passed by the Tahoe that Morgan, Matt and Clyde were waiting on.

"Hotch, Liam is dead, man." He yelled frantically into the phone. "Doyle knows it's us, he saw us, man."

"We need to go in now! NOW! NOW! Hotch barked into his mic, and they jumped out of the vehicle heading toward the cabin.

The team broke in only to realize the cabin had been vacated already, but the lights had been left on and a TV and radio on making it look like someone was in the house. They must have vacated the place before the team arrived, which meant they had probably vacated after the first attack on his men.

"Clear!" Dave screamed from upstairs. "They're not here." He said looking down the stairs and addressing the rest of the team.

"He has her!" Hotch said, running back out to the vehicles with the rest of the team chasing after him. Dave and Morgan jumped in the same truck with Hotch as he frantically drove by, with JJ, Reid and four SWAT agents in a different truck, and Matt, Doyle and another squad in the other truck.

Hotch frantically pulled out his phone from his pocket and dialed Garcia.

"Garcia, I need to you track any flights, commercial or private, that are leaving in the next few hours." He said as he concentrated on his driving and not flipping the truck.

"Oh my God!" Said Garcia, scared, "Does the destination matter, I can get you the information, but if we could narrow it down…"

"Garcia, focus on anything that is headed to the Middle East or Australia." Dave intervened.

"Is he...is he taking Emily there?" She asked terrified.

"Find them, Garcia!" Morgan shouted as they watched the trucks behind them drive as fast as they could to keep up with their vehicle.

Meanwhile, Doyle was riding in one of the Mercedes Benz…Emily was with him, and she was frantically trying to memorize anything that could tell her where they were going. She knew Doyle had been planning to flee the country, she just thought she had more time to prepare and maybe find a way to either kill Doyle or escape. But out of the blue he vacated the cabin and left with her/

"Liam is dead." The driver advised Doyle as soon as he hung up the phone.

Doyle angrily punched the seat in front of him; he was raging mad, and Emily could only pray she found a way to get out of this. The car came to a screeching halt, and Thao and another man began dragging Doyle's suitcase and money briefcases out of the car. Doyle angrily grabbed Emily by the arm and dragged her into the small building that looked like an abandoned warehouse.

"What the hell is wrong with you!" She hissed angrily, trying to get away from him, but he just kept dragging her until they reached a small room where he forcibly threw her in and locked the door behind him.

Most everything was trashed inside and looked like the place had been the room maybe and office for something at some time in the past.

She quickly glanced around trying to find out where she was, or anything that could help her determine what Ian was planning next. The room was trashed, but so was the entire building; only dust and the odd piece of furniture remained of what the place used to be; they were scattered around the floor everywhere: an old filing cabinet, a broken chair, very deteriorated and rotting, pieces of metal that could have belonged to a desk or chair, metal poles and other pieces of foreign metal, all covered with grime and dust.

She looked out a small window high on the wall; it was broken, and cold air was coming in. Maybe if she could break the rest of the glass, she could get out and run. She pushed the old rotten table against the wall and climbed up; they were in an isolated place that looked like an estate, or empty field. It was dark, and she couldn't really make out any features. From far away, she could see the set of lights illuminating a road, or maybe it was just a street.

Wait…that didn't make any sense, it almost looked like the tarmac at the BAU airstrip. That was when Emily realized they were an abandoned airstrip or airport of a sort; she realized his plan of running away with her was still on, and she had to find a way to get away from him. She was tired, and didn't have much energy left…but, she knew she had to hold on.

Suddenly, the door opened, and Ian stepped in, looking at her angrily. Emily had no idea what was going on, but she knew whatever happened, she must remain strong. She was about to ask what was going on when Doyle's hand cracked across her face.

"You fucking bitch, I should have known you had something planned." He screamed at her.

"What are you talking about?" She asked confused, only for Doyle to hit her again…harder this time.

"What's your team doing here?" He snapped.

"What!?" She asked in shock, feeling her heart rate begin to rise as adrenaline kicked in; if the team was here, that could only mean they were already looking for her…maybe she still had a chance.

"I told you that any reckless mistake could cost your life." His fist hit her again, throwing her off balance landing her on the floor.

"I didn't warn my team, I swear, I don't know what they are doing here!" 

"You fucking liar." Ian was seething, and Emily could only pray she could hold long enough for the team to get there.

"They killed Liam, how else did they know we were meeting at the bar?" He barked angrily. "You told them, you've been in contact with them all along." He said, kicking her stomach making her spit blood.

"I didn't contact them" she cried while cleaning her mouth.

"I will kill you, and turn you in pieces to them" 

"You are deranged...no matter what you do to me, even if you kill me, they will get you." Emily said as she slowly stood.

"Your team didn't find me until I wanted them to find me." Doyle barked angrily, hitting her again and throwing her against the table with Emily falling on top of it and breaking it.

Not too far away from there, three SUV trucks assigned by the FBI were looking for anything that could tell them were Doyle had taken Emily.

"I have nothing, sir." Garcia said frantically. "There's no commercial or private flights leaving or scheduled to leave out of the country...not even local flights anyway."

"Doyle wouldn't fly on commercial flights." Clyde spoke in his mike, following the truck that Hotch was driving. "He can't resist extravagance, even when he's being tracked."

"So, it's a private flight…" Dave confirmed, "…or one that he owns."

"I don't think he would try that; every airport has been notified to not authorize anyone into the air." Morgan said, feeling the rush of anger and worry.

"So, he would use anyone that could illegally help him get out of the country."

"He would still need a tarmac or an airstrip, unless he is leaving by helicopter."

"Flying out of state?" Matt said in his microphone smirking, "Not very likely."

"Garcia, check for any abandoned fields or real estate properties with an area large enough for a jet to take off."

"Oh God!" The analyst said, "There's an abandoned airport about twenty miles from where you are." She said, covering her mouth.

"You have an address?"

"3476 Kensington Road."

The three SUVs rushed as fast as they could with only one mission on their mind, rescuing Emily no matter at what cost.

Emily hissed in pain as she tried to get up from the floor; grabbing large piece of metal pole as she stood, she hit Doyle as hard as she could.

"They didn't find you because you let them Ian, they found you because that's what they do." She said angrily, hitting him again as hard as she could.

"They catch psychopaths and make sure they rot in hell." She then hit Doyle hard enough that he lost his balance.

"I should have known better!" He barked angrily, gaining his balance and reaching to hit her but failing. "You're nothing but a whore who uses her body to get what she wants." He managed to say before she hit him on the head again, watching the little trail of blood coming out of his head.

"You used your boss before to get a job that was the only way you could get a promotion, and then you used me to go even higher…now look at you, sleeping with one of the main FBI leaders." Doyle's eyes reflected so much hatred.

"Maybe we are more alike, after all; we both screw people for money Emily." He said, this time knocking her to the ground again; the metal pipe flew out of her hands and landed several feet from her.

"I am nothing like you, Ian; I beat you not only once, but twice." She huffed, breathing erratically.

"You didn't beat me, Lauren Reynolds, because you aren't going to make it out of here alive." He told her kicking her to the corner and reaching for the metal pole.

"It doesn't matter if you kill me, Ian, I still won, you couldn't destroy my family...I came to save my family, and that's what I did." She responded with venom in her eyes knowing this was it for her. She was determined not to cry, not even a single tear. Even if Ian Doyle killed her, she would never show him fear.

"I will find them, I will find that little brat of yours and I will kill her." He vowed.

"No Ian, you won't…Aaron will never let you come near her, he would die if he has to, but I know he will protect her." 

"Oh, right, the stoic Aaron Hotchner who can't even find time to be with his own children." Ian held the metal pole high ready to strike her at again.

Emily stood up, fighting against the excruciating pain. She knew she had at least a few broken ribs and possibly a concussion, but she refused to show him weakness or surrender to him.

"He will always be a better father and a better man than a piece of shit like you!"

"I would have given my life for Declan; the only reason Declan isn't here is because of you." Doyle growled, he had been told the North Koreans had taken his son in order make him confess but ended up killing him.

"You're right about that , I would rather see him die than live his life having a monster for a father!" Emily snarled tiredly…she wasn't sure she would be able to resist much longer.

"You fucking bitch Declan died because you turned him me in and then him." 

"No, Ian, Declan didn't die in the hands of the north Koreans it was me who took him to a better place," she was able to utter, and then she only felt the metal pole puncture her stomach and the quick pain that was spreading across her stomach, everything started moving around and she felt dizzy. She heard the noise of doors being opened, and guns being fired. Ian had taken her words as a confession to murder on his son.

"Ian, the feds are here, we have to go." The team arrived at the abandoned building just as Thao informed Doyle they were there, as he watched Doyle fight with the brunette.

"Kill her if you're going to, but we have to go. Ian turned around and faced Emily one more time, but another round of bullets made him run with Thao leaving Emily there, and forgetting about Declan and everything else,

The team quickly entered the house, taking down three man that worked for Doyle who were at the entrance. Making their way inside the building which was surrounded by SWAT vehicles, JJ and Reid rushed up the small tattered stairs. Morgan, Dave and the remainder of the team all headed toward the back since they heard a door being shut. Hotch, Dave and Matt scanned the first floor, and Dave hissed that she was there as he saw the unconscious brunette lying on the floor inside the tiny room.

Everything started moving slowly as in a slow-motion movie; Hotch heard the shots from far away with different voices screaming, the aircraft noise and then more shots, but his mind was barely registering anything because his eyes were now focused only on Emily as he dropped to the floor…there was a pool of blood, and Emily wasn't conscious.

"No, no, no!" He screamed, as he frantically tried to speak to her, if there hadn't been a pole stuck in her stomach, he would have picked her up.

"Emily, wake up, baby." He begged, "I need a medic now, please I need a medic." He cried hysterically.

Emily's eyes slowly opened and came into focus…she saw the man that she loved; he was there, he had found her…even when she was scared and ran to protect them, somehow, she always knew he would find her.

"Aaron..." She barely whispered.

"Baby, stay with me, please, you're going to be okay, I swear baby" He continued to cry.

"Goddammit! I need a fucking medic!" He desperately screamed.

"I am s... sorry A-Aaron..." Emily said, barely able to utter the words.

"No, no, sweetheart, you have nothing to be sorry for." Hotch grabbed her face tenderly, "Just stay with me, baby." He begged, holding her hand, but he could barely feel her pulse.

"Baby, please...stay with me, everything is going to be fine." But, even then, he knew the chances of that were slim.

Hotch slowly watched as the paramedics arrived; he could hear the ringing in his ears and people moving around. He barely acknowledged Dave's presence who was trying to move him away from Emily as they wheeled her into the ambulance. Then he heard Dave calling him, but it was so far away he could barely hear him, then another hand touched his arm, and Cruz was talking to him but to him it sounded in a foreign language. He glanced at his blood-covered hands and at the ambulance again…his eyes were swimming and he didn't know why.

" _ **There is only one kind of shock worse than the totally unexpected: the expected for which one has refused to prepare."**_ _ **―**_ _ **Mary Renault,**_


	14. Chapter 15

_**The Face of Love: Chapter Fourteen**_

" _Have you ever lost someone you love and wanted one more conversation, one more chance to make up for the time when you thought they would be here forever? If so, then you know you can go your whole life collecting days, and none will outweigh the one you wish you had back."_ _―_ _Mitch Albom_

JJ carefully made her way up the stairs; she wanted to give him all the time in the world to prepare, but she knew they had to leave soon. She slowly walked to the master bedroom looking for him, and for some reason, she expected to find the room an entire mess with the bed undone and everything scattered around, a sign that somehow, he had been there mourning and crying, but the room was as neat and immaculate as it always was. He was standing by the window looking out, a soft rain falling, and he was lost in space somewhere in there. She looked around the perfectly tidy room…that was what freaked her out the most.

"Hotch…" she called a few times, but he didn't acknowledge her presence.

"Aaron!" She said a little louder, and he finally turned to face her, but she could hardly recognize the look on his face.

"Violet and Jack are ready." She said softly. Her heart was shattered as well, and she could hardly form a word without her tears starting to spill down her cheeks.

"We should be heading there." She said as her eyes sparkled with tears of pain.

"Okay." Was all he responded, but he immediately turned around to face the window again. JJ just watched him a few more minutes and then decided to head back downstairs.

Derek was sitting at the kitchen island with Jack as they finished the last details on a small bouquet shaped around a cross; it was Jack's idea, and JJ and Derek both thought it was something great for Jack to do. Violet tried to help but she was still too little to understand, and they truly didn't want the children in more pain and sorrow than they already were in. Violet was in the living room with Spencer, and he was showing her some cards he had in his pockets.

Spencer was wearing a black formal suit, and Violet was wearing a sleeveless black dress with a white sweater; Jack was wearing a black suit that exactly matched the one his father was wearing. Morgan was wearing simple black slacks and a shirt, and Rossi, too, was wearing a black formal suit.

"Is he still getting ready?" Rossi asked, as he saw the blonde come down the stairs; JJ just shrugged her shoulders, and her eyes continued to leak sorrowful tears.

"He said 'Okay'." She replied quietly.

"Is he okay?" Dave questioned., JJ just gave him a look and shrugged again

"I don't even know, it's like you're talking to him and he isn't even there." JJ said, as she wiped her eyes softly.

"Jen…" Dave came closer to her placing his hand around her arm in a comforting way, "…He just lost the love of his life; would you be fine?"

"I know that, of course, I know that, it's just...I don't think he's ever going to be the same."

"You're right, he won't."

"What about Violet and Jack…I'm worried about them; for the past week, Hotch has been in a trance. I don't know what else to do to help him."

"He'll be okay, he's in pain, and he doesn't know how to cope with that, but he has two children, and I know he will eventually pull out of it for them."

JJ didn't seem too convinced, and she just walked away unable to hold back the tears any longer. She was going to busy herself by helping the boys with the bouquet they were working on. Dave, instead, headed upstairs to find his friend. He walked into the room to find Aaron sitting on the bench at the foot of their bed. He seemed to be looking at nothing in particular; he just sat there as if he was lost in his own body.

"Aaron, we need to leave, the service is going to begin soon." But, the younger profiler just nodded without moving. Dave came closer and sat next to him gently touching his back.

"I know you're hurting, and nothing we can say or do is going to make you feel better." He said, feeling his eyes sting as well.

"When we were in the ambulance, I promised her I would spend every second of my life making it up to her, cherishing her every moment and devoting my entire being to her."

"You still can." Dave said emphatically.

"Aaron, you have Violet…she needs you, she doesn't understand that mommy isn't coming home anymore." Dave stated sadly.

Aaron just turned to look at him unable to utter a word.

"Jack is confused, too, and angry; he asked me how come they told him in Sunday School that God was good, then God took away his Emmy."

With those last words, Aaron covered his face with both hands, and finally the tears came.

"How do I do this, how do I live without her?" Aaron cried softly.

"You live the same way she did…" said Dave. "…You spend every second of your life making sure your children are happy, safe, and loved." Dave said patting his friend softly on the back.

"Emily wouldn't want you to change who you are; God, Aaron, you haven't shed a single tear since the hospital, how do you think she would feel knowing you can't even cry for her death and mourn losing her?'

"I don't want my children to think I'm weak, I have to be strong for them."

"Aaron, crying isn't going to show them you're weak, it's going to show them you're human and how much you loved Emily."

"Come on, Aaron, we need to go." Dave told him standing up and heading for the door.

The funeral was complete agony; Dave and Aaron had always been the strong ones of the family, the ones that held their BAU family together during the most difficult times of their lives. Aaron was in complete despair, but he refused to cry, or even show any kind of feeling, something that really worried everyone on the team. They were all suffering with Emily's death in their own way, but the fact that Hotch had not shed a single tear and had this deep stoic façade on his face scared them.

Grief was always difficult for a human, especially when they lost someone close to them; they all knew nothing compared to the loss of the love of your life. But, they were worried because his behavior wasn't like anything they had ever seen. They could just hope that, with time, he would heal and learn to live without the woman who had made him the happiest man in the world.

It wasn't like the rest of the team wasn't hurting…Emily was so deeply-loved by everyone, it was like a piece had been torn away from each of them by her death. The team had always been strong, and they had seen almost every horrible, unsettling thing during their careers, but nothing would ever compare to the pain of losing a friend and member of their family. They all knew there was nothing they wouldn't do to go back in time and get to the abandoned building airstrip after Doyle had managed to escape after hurting Emily…maybe just maybe their friend would, at least, still be alive.

Ian Doyle had managed to run away from them, but he had severely injured Emily before he did so; she had taken a bad beating, and he had stabbed her in the abdomen with a metal pole. The ambulance had managed to get there fast enough, and the EMT personnel rushed Emily to the hospital, but she had already lost so much blood…the doctors did everything they could for her before she lost her battle with living. The team was completely devastated…they couldn't believe what they were being told.

When Clyde Easter had come out and informed them that Emily had never made it off the table, their entire world collapsed around them. Aaron almost knocked Clyde to the floor in an attempt to get past him to go see her, but even the doctors agreed it wouldn't be best for him to see her in the condition she was in. Between Cruz, Clyde and the doctor who operated on Emily, they managed to convince the team and Hotch that it was best if they didn't see her like that. They told Hotch he needed to focus on the good memories he had with her, and that his last image of her shouldn't be on an operating table, or in a coffin.

It didn't made sense to him or anyone else at first, but given her battle with Doyle, they knew her image was going to be jarring. They should not have that image of their sweet, loving Emily, and it was Hotch who finally agreed to their terms. He knew his children would not be able to handle seeing her like that, and he knew he wouldn't either.

In the end, everyone respected his decision and now, here they were at the cemetery. Dave focused on the faces of the team, his family, the people that had been there for him during the most difficult times of his life, and he knew the team would never be the same because of this. Penelope was there with Kevin…Dave was surprised to see her in black; she had always said that death should be a celebration of life instead of mourning a death, and black was a somber color, yet she sat there in a black dress, her eyes so red from crying and so sad. She sobbed openly as Kevin held her.

JJ was next to them, and as Will and her had been arguing so much that he had left the house a few days prior to the funeral, he was not in attendance, but Dave was sure the sorrow on JJ's face wasn't because of Will, it was because she had lost her sister and best friend at the same time. Spencer, too, stood there unable to hold his tears…Dave had always known he was the baby of the family, and therefore, everyone else teased him and messed with him in a lovely, little brother way. Not Emily, though, she was always that emotional sounding board for the young profiler, and she knew just what to say to support him and make him smile.

Derek's eyes were shining with tears, but the angry look on his face told Dave exactly what he needed to know…the same thing probably everyone had been thinking…they would not rest until they killed Doyle. And Aaron…Dave had no idea how to describe what his best friend was going through and how he was feeling, but he knew that the chances of him being able to smile again were little to none. Aaron stood there holding Violet, their beautiful daughter, her sweet, innocent face covered in a pout, her eyes glossy and exhausted. Emily had died saving her daughter, and whatever Dave had to do to make sure the team, Aaron and everyone else recovered from her doing that, he would do it, no matter what it took.

Finally, Matt Cruz stood in a corner; he looked terribly sad and heartbroken because of the death of his life-long friend. The only one of the team that wasn't there was Clyde Easter, something that really pissed Dave off after everything that happened and after she died because of a mission Easter organized. Dave felt the very least he could do was have the decency to show up at her funeral, but Easter claimed he had somewhere important to be. Maybe it was just for the best; hopefully, one day everyone would recover from their terrible loss.

Everyone was listening to the priest as he was speaking, so that no one paid any attention to the black Mercedes that was driving through the cemetery watching them.

"She's dead finally, huh?" The French man said from the driver's seat.

"Yeah, I had to make sure she actually died this time." Doyle said, watching from a distance. "I told you I was going to end her and everything she had…none of them will ever be the same after this." He smirked and closed the window.

"Let's go, we have a plane to catch." With those words, the car left and headed to the airport.

A few weeks later and thousands of miles away from Washington, Clyde Easter walked around the crowded city of Santorin, Greece. He wasn't really a big fan of Greece, or the people that lived there, but this wasn't a pleasure trip, it was a business trip. He sat at a coffee shop near Pyrgos Village and ordered a coffee while waiting and reading a newspaper, occasionally sending documents through his phone. About two hours later, a blonde woman wearing sunglasses sat down in front of him. He looked up without being startled by her presence and smirked as he looked at her.

"Obviously, punctuality isn't a thing in Greece, since I have been sitting here for two hours." Clyde said smoothly.

"Yeah, well, I had to make sure you weren't being followed, or that you weren't setting me up." She replied bitterly.

"How are you?" He asked sincerely, looking at her.

"How do you think I am?" The woman answered angrily while she reached to wipe her tears beneath her sunglasses.

Clyde discreetly handed her an envelope across the table; she picked it up and gazed inside.

"Is everything here?" she questioned eyeing him skeptically

"Of course, it is…a deal is a deal, darlin'."

"Thanks, I should leave, I don't want to draw attention." She stated, outing the folder on her purse and getting up from the table.

"Hey, darlin'." Clyde called after her as she walked away.

"Everything will be over soon, just trust me." He vowed, and she turned around and faced him feeling her eyes fill with tears.

"I don't trust anyone anymore." She stated coldly.

"Emily..." He said, standing up and coming close to her, wiping away her tears softly.

"I will get him, and when I do, you'll come home and have your family again. I'll do it even if it's the last thing I do." He vowed, taking her hand and squeezing it softly.

"I know." Emily said in a trembling voice. "I just hope it's not ten years from now, what is Violet going to remember about me in ten years?" She said as her voice cracked.

"Just worry about staying safe and healthy, you look too thin." Clyde said, squeezing her hand again. She was about to leave again when he called her

"Hey Em, you look damn fine with blonde hair." He joked, and she smirked.

"Yeah, it's just a wig, get your mind out of the gutter, Easter" she joked and she kept walking until she was lost among the people and the amazing village.

" _ **Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live." -Norman Cousins**_


	15. Chapter 16

**Chapter Fifteen: The Face of Love**

 _"When someone you love dies, and you're not expecting it, you don't lose her all at once; you lose her in pieces over a long time—the way the mail stops coming, and her scent fades from the pillows and even from the clothes in her closet and drawers. Gradually, you accumulate the parts of her that are gone. Just when the day comes—when there's a particular missing part that overwhelms you with the feeling that she's gone, forever—there comes another day, and another specifically missing part._

 _\- John Irving_

The team was working on a case in Reno, Nevada; it had been almost two months since Emily had passed away. Everyone had mourned her death in their own way, but eventually they realized they could only come out stronger if they stayed strong as a little family. They started spending more time together, checking on each other more often and even hanging out after work more than usual. Of course, they were in pain, but they knew that they had to accept her death and cherish their good memories of her. Emily wouldn't want them to fall apart and distance themselves from each other, she would want them to keep living and enjoy each second of each other's company.

For the most part, they were doing pretty well, except Hotch…he had completely distanced himself from the team and no longer participated in any outside, non-work activities they had. He started working more cases than usual given that he didn't have to take part in field work in his current position with the BAU, and when he wasn't working a case, he was at the office late at night doing paperwork or consultations. He was always irritated and constantly snapping at people, and the team was starting to get worried, but they had no idea how to approach him, not even Dave, his long-life friend.

The case they were currently working on consisted of a series of mysterious deaths around the Reno area. The unsub was targeting victims randomly, stabbing them to death. He wasn't really targeting a specific kind of victim, the only thing all victims had in common was that they were all male and homeless, but they didn't have a specific race or age, they were all just homeless, or had become homeless in the past few months.

"It could be a hate crime…he obviously has money, so he's targeting people who live on the streets." Morgan said. They were at the Reno Police Department trying to come up with a profile.

"But, he would be killing females too if that were the case, and he isn't, at least so far." Reid pointed out.

"Maybe they remind him of someone that hurt him in the past, or it could be related to the fact that he was homeless at some point of his life." Said Dave

Before they could finish their thoughts and could say something else, one of the detectives informed them that there had been another murder near a shelter a few blocks away. The team headed there to analyze the crime scene; Dave and Morgan stayed at the scene, and Hotch and JJ headed to the shelter to see if anyone had seen or reported anything. Reid stayed behind at police station to set up a geographical profile.

JJ and Hotch were speaking with one of the ladies that volunteered at the shelter to see if she had seen anything out of the ordinary, and if she had a list of names of the people currently staying at the shelter.

"I can get you the sign-in sheet, but the majority of the guys here don't sign it, and the ones that do sign it, don't usually use their real names." The volunteer explained.

"So, you could have a sexual predator here and you wouldn't even know?" Hotch said bitterly, making JJ turn to look at him with wide eyes.

"Sorry," JJ quickly apologized. "If we could look at the list, it could really help a lot."

"Or, we could come back with a warrant if you like." Hotch jumped in before the volunteer could even respond.

"Hotch!" JJ said, shocked.

"Withholding information that can lead to the arrest of a criminal makes you an accessory to murder." He said severely.

"Murder!?" The volunteer questioned in shock.

"That's right, and if this guy murders someone else, you'll be charged with negligent homicide." He bit back angrily.

"God, Aaron, stop!" JJ said, unable to believe what she was hearing. "Excuse us, please." She said as she pulled the older profiler away from the volunteer.

"What the hell is wrong with you!" She snarled…she had never spoken to Hotch in this manner, but someone needed to call him out.

"We have a serial killer who is targeting victims randomly, and unless you want to find another victim, then I would appreciate it if you let me do my job."

"Look, we all want to catch this guy, okay, but you were completely out of line with that volunteer, she didn't need to know that there is possibly a murderer staying at the shelter."

"JJ, you seem to be forgetting that I'm the Section Chief of this team, so if you have a problem with the way I run it maybe you should consider transferring to another team." And with that, he left JJ alone in the shelter aghast and shaking.

By the time the case had been resolved they had found three more bodies, and Hotch had gone off on Spencer and Garcia as well. JJ was clearly pissed with him, but he acted like it wasn't a big deal, and she would get over it. At the end of the night, JJ picked up the files she had chosen for their next case and headed to his office to get his final approval, since Morgan was still closing the last details of their Nevada case.

"These are all the files we have." She said, placing them on his desk hardly looking at him.

"Thanks, I'll review them later, have a good night." Was his reply, but JJ turned around without answering and started out the door.

"Jennifer, I hope you understand this isn't about your feelings getting hurt, but rather about the cases and the effectiveness of the team." His tone was cold and his face as stoic as always.

"My feeling?" JJ said smirking and turning around to face him… "Is that what you think this is about? My feelings?" She said harshly.

"As a federal agent I need to know that you can remain objective with my decisions even if you don't always agree with them."

"This isn't about objectivity or my feelings being hurt, Hotch" she stated, looking him directly in the eyes.

"This is about you being out of line and heartless with the people we're supposed to protect."

"Out of line!?" He snapped, "JJ, I'm the leader of this team...I'm sorry."

"Goddammit, Hotch, don't use the "superior bullshit card with me!" She said, angrily looking at him surprising him with her tone and words.

"You want to go ahead and fire me for airing my opinion, go ahead." She said bitterly, laughing.

"But, it's time someone tells you the truth."

"The truth?" He asked incredulously, he was shitting, who the hell did she think she was!

"I know you're hurting and mourning, but we all are, you aren't the only one that lost someone you loved." Said JJ with her eyes full of tears.

"She was my best friend and my sister, and I will never get over her death, but you don't see me falling apart and stopping to live just because she left."

"JJ, enough!"

"God, Hotch, for the past few months you have been on a blind mission working nonstop to avoid dealing with what happened, when was the last time you spent time with Violet, or even Jack for that matter?"

"You know nothing about my daughter!" He exclaimed angrily.

"I know that little girl has spent every day lying on Emily's bed because she still can't understand why her mother is gone, and her father is hardly ever home because he is so angry with life he refuses to be human and accept that she is gone...and his kids are hurting while he refuses to look farther than his nose."

Hotch stood there looking at her, angry and heartbroken; he wanted to say something to her, to yell at her for being insubordinate, but he couldn't form the words.

"I can't even begin to imagine what Emily would say if she could see you now; she died to protect her daughter, and you have completely forgotten about her." Tears spilled down JJ's cheeks as she stared coldly at her boss and long-time friend.

"I'm sorry she died, and there is nothing I wouldn't give to have her back with us, but this…" She pointed at him sadly, "…This isn't why she died... too bad you can't see it."

With those words, she stormed out of the office and headed to the elevators; she had never spoken to her boss in that manner, but she couldn't stand to watch him tearing apart his and his children's lives.

Hotch arrived home around eight o'clock that night, very tired and angry, and he wanted to do nothing but lock himself in his office for the rest away from the world.

"Hey, I'm sorry I'm late." He told his mother, who was looking after Violet.

"It's alright, Aaron, Haley has already picked up Jack, and he did finish his homework." Said Carole Hotchner.

"Thanks so much, mom, I really appreciate everything you're doing."

"I know, honey, I'm happy to help."

"Is Violet in bed already?"

"No, she's in your room, in the master room, she has been refusing to come out." Hotch looked up the stairs and sighed sadly.

"I'll go talk to her."

"I'll warm you something to eat while you see her." Said Carole sadly, watching her son's life fall apart was killing her.

Hotch slowly made his way upstairs, he had not slept in the master bedroom since Emily's funeral, he just couldn't be there, and it was killing him. Violet was lying on the bed wrapped in Emily's favorite fleece blanket. The television was on, but the little girl didn't seem to be paying attention, she was clutching the blanket and her teddy bear.

"Hey, sweetheart." He called softly sitting on the bed next to her. Violet's eyes just moved to acknowledge his presence but went back to the television.

"What's going on, sweetheart?" He reached to touch her forehead, and she was slightly warm, maybe she had a fever he was thinking.

"Are you feeling achy?" He asked, but Violet didn't reply.

"Baby, please tell daddy what's wrong." He reached to lift the girl placing her on his lap.

"I just want mommy." Violet said, and tears began running freely down her cheeks, "I miss mommy."

"I know, sweetheart." He felt his own eyes start to sting, "I miss mommy, too, more than you'll ever know."

"Are you leaving me, too?" Violet asked innocently.

"No baby, of course not, I won't ever leave you."

"But you aren't home anymore, Nana says you're always at work, and that's what happened to mommy, she went to work, and she never came back."

"Oh, Violet." Aaron said, squeezing her and sobbing slightly.

"Daddy is never going to leave you, I promise you that."

That night, it took a while to get Violet to sleep; Hotch stayed with her the entire time and ended up spending the night on the bed he used to share with Emily, both he and Violet wrapped in Emily's blanket. He knew he was falling apart, failing his children and possibly even his team and family. It was as if suddenly he had forgotten how to live, how to smile and how to breathe. But, he needed to get his life back together for Violet's sake, and JJ had made a good point earlier. Emily hadn't died protecting Violet, so he could fall apart, he knew he would never be able to make it up to Emily, but he would to Violet, his little girl and princess, the most amazing gift Emily had ever given him.

The following day, he arrived at Quantico…he had been working on some files when Dave walked in with a questioning look on his face.

"I was just told that Kramer wanted to meet with me." Dave said, walking in and looking at his friend who only glanced at him, then his eyes went back to the board.

"Do you know what this could be about?"

"Why would I know?"

"Well, because you're the Section Chief, and you also had a meeting with him earlier this morning." Dave said, his eyes questioning his friend.

"Dave, I'm resigning at the end of the month." He said firmly.

"What? Are you out of your mind?"

"No" He responded, sighing and leaning on his chair. "Dave, for the past few months I've been angry at life and everything around me."

"Everyone has a different way of mourning."

"I've already lost Emily, I can't lose Violet, too." He explained, looking out the window, "I'm the only parent she has, and if something ever happens to me..."

"You don't have to quit, technically, you shouldn't be working cases anymore anyway."

"I know, but every minute this job takes away from me is a minute less I get to spend with Violet. I wasn't able to make it up to Emily, but I can make it up to my daughter, and now she needs her dad more than anything else."

Dave nodded, looking at him.

"You want to find Doyle." It wasn't a question.

"No, I don't." He assured Dave, "I'm not going to start another war with him. Emily died for her daughter, if l let my anger guide my decisions, and I lost Violet I have nothing left, Dave."

"You have Jack, but I get your point, Aaron, you can't stop living because she's gone."

The younger profiler didn't respond, so Dave decided to just let him be, this was a lot harder than what everyone else had expected. Later that same night, it was only he and JJ left at Quantico, he had not said much to the blonde profiler since the night before, so she slowly made her way into his office.

"Hotch?" She asked while stepping in, "Dave said you needed these files for the Parson's case."

"Thanks, JJ, I'll finalize the reports and close the case."

JJ nodded placing the files on his desk and looking at him; it really broke her heart to see him like this.

"Dave also said you're leaving at the team end of the month."

"I might still help a few weeks after that, but yeah, I need to focus on my family, especially on Violet."

"But this is everything you ever worked for." She said incredulously.

"It's not, I love my job and everything I do, but right now I need to be home with my children, and you said some things yesterday that really made me think."

"Hotch, look…" She said crossing her arms in front of her chest. "…I'm sorry if I was a little out of line."

"No, JJ, it's okay…I really appreciate it."

"Just hear me out, please." She said cutting him off and coming to sit in the chair in front of his desk

"I never meant you for you to think you are a bad father." She started… looking at him directly. "I didn't say you have to quit your job and dedicate your life to be home with your kids _only_."

"JJ..."

"Aaron…" The blond said a little louder to stop him from talking. "What I meant to say to you is that it's okay to fall apart, and cry, and mourn her death, it's okay to be angry and miss her..." He sat there listening to her.

"Since I've known you, you've always had a strong, stoic face, and you've forced yourself to never smile or laugh again, and I get that after everything we've seen it's just a coping mechanism..." She pointed out, looking away for a second. "But, you lost your wife who was the love of your life, it's okay to be devastated and angry, you can't move on until you accept her death, Hotch."

"JJ, I appreciate your words, I really do, and I know for you and the team it's easier to move on and keep going on with your lives but..."

"Is that what you think?" She asked baffled "That we have moved on?"

"You guys seem to be doing okay." He responded, JJ nodded and took a deep breath…

"Every night before I go to sleep, I sit and pray, and I talk to her." JJ stated as her eyes started to shine, "I ask her to watch after all of us, but especially to watch after you, to help you assimilate this, and to protect you and the children." Her glossy eyes focused on his cold dark ones.

"She was more than a friend to me; just because I keep living doesn't mean I have forgotten her. Every day, I pray with her for you...and to one day give us all solace."

"Spencer has come to my house in tears at least six times…" JJ continued "And then he goes home and watches Solaris time after time, because Emily was the only person that never saw him like some prodigy genius, and she really talked to him like a person and not some young kid."

Hotch's eyes were stinging, but he willed the tears not to fall until his eyes started burning.

"Penelope has replaced every little figurine in her office for something that reminds her of Emily, or something that Emily gave her, and every single screen in that office has a picture of her, and every time she comes in or goes home, she sits there and cries."

"Derek has been on a non-stop mission…every second he isn't here, he's chasing Doyle, or he's at the cemetery sitting by her tombstone." Her tears were now spilling over, and Hotch could feel his, too, beginning to trickle down his cheeks.

"Dave, well, you know Dave, he mourns in private, but I know every single night he sits by the fireplace and pours a glass of scotch for him and one for her…" JJ said swallowing her tears. "And he sits there crying and talking to her."

"We haven't forgotten about her, Aaron, and we never will, but we have to keep living and while doing that honor her memory." She watched as tears started to fall from his eyes. He moved away from her walking to the window, but she still heard the small sob that came out of his mouth.

"How am I supposed to start all over, when the person who made my whole life shine is gone?" He said, choking on his tears. JJ walked over and placed a hand softly on his back.

"You live by honoring her death, teaching Violet what an amazing person she was, and you keep doing what she loved the most...putting criminals like Doyle away, because that is who you are and what Violet needs, her daddy and her hero." Hotch turned to look at her, and she smiled through her tears pulling him into a hug. It was more than a boss/subordinate hug, but they were family before anything else.

"Thank you, JJ, really, for everything you've done, not only for me but for Violet."

"You don't have to thank me, we're family." She smiled softly.

"Where do we go from here?" He asked tiredly.

"We go home…I have two beautiful children home waiting on me, and you have a precious little girl waiting for you." She softly replied, making her way to the door.

"That's not what I meant."

"I know what you meant...tomorrow? Well, tomorrow we do it all over again." She smiled and then left.

Hotch looked around his office again. He knew he couldn't keep living in this misery, and he needed to fight for Violet and Emily. He picked up a frame from his desk and looked at it, running his thumb across it. It was a picture of Emily wearing a loose, purple sweater; she was pregnant with Violet in that picture, and she was smiling and glowing. He brought the picture to his face and placed a kiss on it.

"Rest in peace, beautiful girl...you'll always be in my heart...until I see you again." A few more tears fell from his eyes, but he wiped them away and placed the picture back on his desk and headed out turning off the lights in his office. It was time to do something about it rather than sitting there mired in bitterness.

Across the globe in a very luxurious mansion, Ian Doyle sat on the little porch drinking a glass of expensive whisky and admiring the nice view from his residence. A knock on the glass door brought him out of his thoughts as he told the person to come in.

"Boss, I have bad news for you." The French man said looking at the view, too.

"What is it now, Farr." He replied annoyed because their business had been decreasing since the FBI took down the Arab deal.

"I can't find the boy." Farr said looking at him waiting for his outburst.

"What do you mean you can't find him?" Doyle asked angrily. "I'm sure a death certificate is somewhere in a database system." Doyle stated, he had been trying to find out where his son was buried so he could visit his grave.

"There isn't a death certificate in his name." Farr informed him.

"I thought you had already discovered the location where he was buried." Doyle said standing up and looking at him.

"We did, and they ransacked it just like you asked." The French man said… "The coffins were empty."

Doyle stood there looking at him in shock, but then he realized he shouldn't be surprised, he should have expected this the entire time.

"He's not dead." He finished for Farr. "They have him somewhere."

"Ian, they're never going to tell you anything about him, not after you killed that bitch."

"Sure, they will." Doyle then smiled. "They still have something I can take from them." He said as an evil grin filled his face.

"Oh, you're really bad...you're going after the little girl, aren't you?"

"Get everything ready, we're going back to Washington!" He stated, going inside the house.

" _ **If an injury has to be done to a man it should be so severe that his vengeance need not be feared." -Niccolo Machiavelli**_


	16. Chapter 17

_**The Face of Love: Chapter Sixteen**_

" _Courage doesn't always roar, sometimes it's the quiet voice at the end of the day whispering 'I will try again tomorrow"_ _―_ _Mary Anne Radmacher_

Hotch and JJ were at the park with Jack, Violet, Lucas and Henry. They had all gone to get breakfast early and had taken the children to the park, so they could play and spend time together. It was Sunday afternoon, and they had been with the children all day, trying to forget about everything that had happened for the past few months and have fun. They both watched as their sweet babies chased each other around. Jack was the older brother, and he did such a good job watching after his sister and making sure she was always safe. Violet was attempting to argue with Jack…something about being a big girl, and she could play all the games, even the "big boy" ones, JJ and Hotch just laughed watching them.

"She is so grown up." JJ said, looking at her. "I mean, even at five years old she acts like a young lady."

"Tell me about it, she told me the other night she doesn't want to wear dresses anymore because she isn't a baby."

"You know, she really reminds me of Emily," She said looking at him softly, "I know you hear that enough, but...she is Emily in every single way" JJ trailed off, her eyes focusing on the little girl running around chasing Henry.

"She does this weird thing when I want her to do something, where she places a hand on her hip and stares at me unimpressed." He said laughing, as he, too, watched his little girl. "She just looks at me with a defiant look, and I see Emily all over again." He said sadly. JJ smiled and looked away for a second, she knew he was still deeply hurting.

"Hotch, when I was eleven my sister gave me this cute necklace in the shape of a heart…" She started saying, "She gave it to me and told me that she loved me." His eyes watched her closely and realized this was something he had never heard about her life, so he listened carefully.

"I keep he necklace at home in a special place," She told him as she looked at him her eyes red and sparkling, "It was the last time I ever saw her."

"I'm sorry, JJ." He wanted to say more but he knew there weren't words.

"I think about her all the time, just like I do with Emily." Her eyes had become red from tearing up, but she smiled.

"It does get better, Hotch, losing someone is never easy," She reached to touch his hand what was lying on the bench. "But one day you'll remember her, and it won't hurt, you'll be happy with her memories...because that's what she would want you to do."

"Thank you, JJ," He said squeezing her hand, "For everything you've done for Vi and me."

"Anytime." Her eyes went back to the children who were now playing with a soccer ball.

"With all of this, I haven't even asked how you're doing." His gaze went back to look at her.

"I'm okay, Hotch." She knew very well he was talking about Will leaving her and the kids, and he kept his gaze on her.

"We were having issues for a while," She explained, "The only reason we stayed together was because I got pregnant with Lucas, but we already had been talking about separating."

"Why didn't you tell anyone?" He asked, surprised.

"I did, Emily knew everything." She smiled softly.

"She never mentioned anything." He said, thinking and smiling back softly.

"Of course, she didn't, that's what your best friends do, keep your secrets." This time Hotch smirked at her.

"Are you okay now?"

"Yeah, I'm okay honestly, him leaving was probably the best thing that could have happened."

"I don't understand."

"You can't stay with someone because you have a child together," She said thoughtfully, "It just makes you miserable and ends up hurting your children more."

"I can understand that, you're a great mother, JJ, your kids are so lucky."

"Sometimes you just keep going and you do whatever you have to do to keep your children happy." JJ said, watching the four children run around the park, and Hotch, too, focused on the children and whatever was ahead of them.

The following day, the team was having a meeting in the conference room; it was actually a budget meeting, and they were talking about new adjustments and changes for the BAU that could take place. They were all working together to make sure their team wasn't going to be split up, because for the past two months and after Emily's death, everything had been difficult and there were whispers about separating the team and sending everyone to different areas within the Bureau.

After a long discussion with the Director, Cruz was in his office; the heat was under his ass, and he knew it wouldn't be long before they took action against him. He had not been able to justify Emily's death, and everything was "technically" his fault, since he had authorized the mission in the first place and allowed the BAU to get involved. He was focusing on his emails when his office door open, and the man he least expected to see entered.

"Easter!" Matt said surprised and stood up. "What are you doing here?"

"We need to talk." Clyde stated, looking at him and walking over to the window.

"What's going on, and what are you doing here?"

"We need to get back on tracking Doyle, we have to find him." Clyde said, turning to look straight at him.

"Are you out of your mind!?" Cruz barked, "Clyde, I'm already under investigation by the Bureau, I can't just authorize another investigation into a man we've been chasing for a decade now…I'm about to lose my job."

"Doyle knows about Declan." Clyde said as he watched Matt's jaw drop.

"What are you saying?"

"He knows he's alive, and he's coming to find him." Said Clyde with a severe look on his face.

"How do you know that?" Cruz questioned surprised.

"I've been keeping tabs on him, he's been trying to trace Declan's death certificate; either way, he knows the boy is alive."

"So, he's coming here?" Matt questioned.

"What do you think?" he replied sarcastically

"Is that why you came?"

"No, I was already here for other business when I was notified by the intelligence analyst that Doyle was trying to find Declan."

Matt ran a hand across his hair and sighed, frustrated.

"So, what do we do next?"

"We need to tell Hotchner and the team." Clyde said convinced, "And we need to call Emily." 

"What? No! Are you out of your mind?" Matt stated incredulously, "We can't call Emily, she's going to freak out and come here, and what good would that do?"

"They're going to find out eventually that she's alive."

"Clyde, we can't tell them anything yet!" Matt said angrily, "We don't know where Doyle is and what he is capable of doing if he finds out she's still alive...he will definitely kill her and take the boy, and I'm not going to risk her life again, last time you faked her death look what happened"

"Okay, and what in the bloody hell do you expect me to do, Matt!?" Clyde barked angrily.

"To be a freaking man and help me catch him, but we aren't going to bring Emily into this; it's best now for her to stay where she is." 

"Fine." Clyde said annoyed, "But, we have to tell the rest of them…we need their help to catch him."

They started walking out Cruz's office and made their way down to the sixth floor where the team was still talking. They had finished with the budget meeting and were now talking about a possible case that they might be taking; it was a local one, so they would be working from the BAU and conducting local interviews.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, sorry to interrupt…" Matt stated as he walked in followed by Clyde. The team watched them enter in surprise.

"What's going on?" Hotch questioned surprised, "And Easter, to what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?" He added harshly.

"I have a case that I need you to work on." Cruz said, looking at the entire team.

"But, we're taking the local high school case…" Morgan added confused.

"I'll assign one of the other teams to that case, this particular case has a higher priority."

"Agent Cruz," Hotch said standing up, "I would appreciate it if you could tell me what's going on."

"It's about Ian Doyle." Clyde finally said, watching the team's shocked faces.

"What about Doyle?" Dave inquired.

"We have reason to believe he's coming back to Washington D.C.".

"What! That doesn't make any sense." Said Reid, "I thought he was running away from the police."

"We believe he's after his son, he knows he's alive."

"How did he find out?" JJ eyed Matt with a furrowed brow.

"He had someone looking into his death, we believe he wanted to know were he was buried for whatever reason…" Matt started, "When he couldn't find the death certificate, he tracked the place where Declan was supposed to be buried; his men exhumed and trashed the grave but found no body." 

"What about Declan, is the boy okay?" Hotch asked, genuinely concerned because he knew what the little boy meant to Emily.

"He is for now, the Marshal Services Officer was able to track Declan's location before his men could, and they took him and his nanny into protective custody again."

"Where was Declan living?" Derek asked.

"Alexandria, Virginia, so he's coming straight to Washington."

"So, Declan is safe, now our focus is to bring Doyle here and finish him." Hotch said with all the anger he had been hiding for months resurfacing.

"If we can get him close enough, I'll take the shot myself." Said Matt, making eye contact with Hotch long enough so he could read what was in his eyes. Yes, they were still on the same page, and he would do anything in his power to kill the man that took Emily away from them.

"I think we can all agree that all of us lost someone we deeply loved, we're all in this, and we'll end that son of a bitch!" Dave added.

"Who was taking care of Declan all this time?" Derek asked once they were on the same page, and they had decided they were going to rescue the little boy Emily fought so hard to protect.

"A friend Emily had in Virginia; after the mission with Doyle ended, he was arrested, and his entire villa was torn apart."

"How did Emily manage to get him out…if Interpol showed up without warning, how did she even manage to take him without Doyle knowing she was undercover, or the police finding out about Doyle?" Reid said suddenly.

"She had already set up a plan to rescue him…when the police showed up at Doyle's villa, both he and Emily were arrested, but Declan was taken by Tsia Mosley, one of our undercover agents." Clyde related to them.

"So Tsia knows where he was, is there a possibility she is the one who tipped Doyle off about Declan and where he was?" Hotch suddenly asked.

"Well, that could be," Matt said looking at Hotch, "But Tsia was killed just a few days after Emily died." Matt explained. "And plus the fact that Tsia had no idea where they took Declan after the mission was over negates that."

"You said Emily was the one who rescued and relocated him…" Hotch turned to Matt.

"She did; once Doyle was in in jail, she left Interpol and moved here, relocated Declan and made certain he was safe."

"Why D.C.?"

"She wanted to be close to him to make sure he had a different life."

"I can see that," JJ added, "Doyle's father was a sociopath and Doyle followed in his footsteps, she didn't want the same future for the boy."

"Declan was attending a private school…he's smart, and Emily just wanted him to be have a normal life, make friends, and one day have a career and maybe even get married."

"Wait! He is in a private school, right?" Spencer said suddenly, "That means Doyle won't be able to take him off the street, or at his house." He turned to look at the team.

"Doyle will be watching the school and waiting for an opportunity." Hotch finished for him.

"So, we set up surveillance outside the school, and we wait until he least expects it and take him down." Hotch said, eager to revenge his wife's death.

Later that afternoon, Dave and Hotch sat in one of the surveillance vans set up by the team. They wanted to track Doyle's movements before he was able to get to the little boy. Now, they were watching not far from the school, but far enough away to not draw attention to themselves.

"How are you holding up?" Dave asked sincerely, still worried about his best friend.

"I'm okay, some days are better than others." He replied exhaling.

"Eventually, you'll have resignation and learn how to live without her."

"I don't think I could ever really live without her, but I'll keep going and make sure our daughter is loved and happy." He softly opined.

"She'll always be in your heart, Aaron, you know you just can't forget her."

"You know, I've spent my entire life chasing criminals, but I couldn't help the one person that meant the most to me."

"You can't blame yourself for that, Aaron, it was a tragedy, and we all did everything we could to save her, and she knows that."

"I could have done more and didn't, and now she is dead because of me."

"You can't be serious!" Dave said, "You can't carry her death on your back, that's going to destroy you."

"I failed her Dave, she wouldn't be dead if it wasn't for me."

"You didn't kill her Aaron, Doyle did…she fought to protect her family, and none of your actions caused her death."

"When we got married, I made a promise to her, a vow…" He said looking at him sadly, "I promised her that no matter what went on, no matter how many fights and disagreements we had, I would never give up on us." His eyes look glossy, but he continued to talk, "My relationship with Haley didn't work out because I could not open myself up to her, I didn't tell her what I did, but mostly, it was to protect her..."

"But, Emily and I never had that problem, we always talked about everything, we didn't go to sleep angry with each other…the day of our wedding, I vowed to her that even if she was the one that gave up, I wouldn't let it happen, I would fight for her no matter what I had to do."

"But she's the one who kept it away from you...you can't seriously think you not trying harder is the reason why she's dead." Dave reasoned, looking at Hotch in shock. He knew his friend had been dealing with her loss, but to blame himself was something that really surprised him. Aaron was usually very astute and would know that couldn't be true.

"It is, Dave, If I had fought harder, not given up on us and agreed to the divorce…I knew she wasn't fine, that something was going on, but rather than confront her about it and do whatever I could do to get her to tell me what was going on, I just gave up and now she's gone."

"As stubborn as you both are I find it very unlikely that she would have said something anyway...she asked for a divorce to keep you away and safe, and no matter what you did, she wasn't going to let you in on it."

"We were together just a few weeks before she..."

Dave's brow furrowed for a second, as he wasn't really sure what his friend was talking about; watching the reaction on his friend's face, Hotch continued speaking. "The night I took her home, when we were working the case where the deputy was shot, that night we _were_ together again, we made love and she slept on my arms all night. I could see it in her eyes, she was crying, and if I had pushed enough maybe she would have said something."

"Look, Aaron..." Said Dave, but he was interrupted by the school bell ringing, and their eyes went back to the watch trying to see if they could see Doyle approaching the school.

They waited for at least a half hour more, in addition to the two hours they had already been there. No one ever approached the school, no suspicious cars drove by, or anything that could indicate Doyle was watching his son.

"We must be missing something, maybe he's going to try to take the boy another way?" Aaron said, looking around and then down at his watch.

The ringing from his cellphone interrupted his answer, and he realized it was his mother calling. She normally wouldn't call him at work unless it was important.

"Mom, hey, I'm in the middle of a case...I'm not…"

"Aaron, they took her! We got home from school, and they broke into the house and took her…they hit me!" His mother sobbed desperately.

"Mom, slow down, calm down, what are you talking about?" All the while, his heart starting to beat rapidly.

"They took Violet! I tried to stop them, but they hit me, and..."

"Okay, I'm on my way, stay calm and do not open the door to anyone else until the police gets there.

"What's going on?" Dave asked worriedly, seeing his friend's reaction, but Hotch frantically dialed another number and started driving away recklessly.

"This is Agent Hotchner with the Federal Bureau of investigation, I need police officers sent to 95297 Cobalt Lane, possible assault. I also need an Amber Alert issued for all states and borders. Five-year-old girl with black hair, fair skin and black eyes, Violet Hotchner…possible kidnaping!"

"Aaron, what the hell is going on?"

"He has Violet!" He answered unable to see his friend's eyes, as he felt his own eyes begin to swim with a flood of tears.

" _I know there are people who believe you should forgive and forget. For the record, I'd like to say I'm a big fan of forgiveness as long as I'm given the opportunity to get even first."_ _―_ _Sue Graft_

 _ **Sorry for the late post my lovely readers, I been trying really hard to post a chapter everyday. I was on bed sick all day and didn't have energies, and then I got distracted watching "Les Do Make Up" her lives are amazing. Anyway here it is, I might update late tomorrow or the next day. But thanks SOO MUCH for your reviews and following this story that is what it keeps me inspired. I have a couple more ideas already on the over, after this one is over. And as I said before I will finish the rest of the stories that haven't been updated. Thanks for you love and please don't kill me just yet...it will get better...**_


	17. Chapter 18

_**The Face of Love: Chapter Seventeen**_

" _The only difference between a hero and the villain is that the villain chooses to use that power in a way that is selfish and hurts other people"_

 _\- Chadwick Boseman_

Hotch rushed inside his house with the team following him; there were already at least six police cars outside his house. The minute his mother called him to inform him Violet had been taken, his entire world collapsed around him. He knew if Doyle managed to hurt Violet in any way, he would not be able to live with it, he hadn't been able to save his wife, but he would die saving his daughter if that's what he had to do.

"Mom, I'm here..." He walked into the kitchen where the Detectives now had Carole Hotchner sitting down attempting to make her relax and tell them what happened.

"Aaron, I'm so sorry, honey, they took our little girl..." She sobbed throwing herself into her son's arms.

"It's okay, calm down, we'll get him I swear to you, we _will_ get him." Hotch vowed.

"Him?" Carole asked in shock? "You know who has her?" Her eyes were red and puffy, and Aaron just pulled her into his arms again, he would have done anything to keep his mother from going through this.

"Oh God," She said suddenly realizing something… "It's the same man that killed Emily, isn't it?" She cried desperately.

"I will get him, I swear to you, and I will get Violet back."

"Ma'am," said one of the detectives, "You need to finish answering our questions...please?" Carole just looked at them and turned to look at Hotch.

"It's okay, just answer everything they need." Hotch said, attempting to be as calm as he could be; it was taking every single fiber of his being not to lose his mind. He remembered all the times he told parents of the children they were trying to rescue to keep calm, and focus…right now, he was about to lose his mind.

"Hotch, the Amber Alert has been issued nationwide, and her picture and his are all over the place." JJ said touching his arm and fighting against the tears in her eyes; this made it more personal than it had ever been for the team. Now, Hotch had a child of his own, and she was absolutely sure all of them would do anything in their power to destroy Doyle…no matter at what cost.

"Thanks, JJ, we need to be heading out...Haley and Jack are going to stay with my mother until we're finished with this situation."

"Of course, Garcia is on her way here, too; she'll set up all her computer equipment from here, and the detectives have five Marshal Service officers stationed around the outside of the house for their protection."

Once the detectives interrogated his mother and everyone on the team about the case with Doyle, the team could return to the BAU to discuss what the next step in getting Violet home safe was going to be. As much as Hotch wanted to be out on the street looking for his daughter and say, ' _to hell with everything'_ , he knew better than anyone that they had to be smart about this. They knew Doyle wasn't going to kill Violet, because they had determined he wanted them to trade the girl for Declan, and as much as they all wanted to do that, they couldn't risk the children's lives either.

"We need to know that Violet is okay before we agree to _anything_ with Doyle." Clyde said speaking to them as they gathered around the conference table.

"He hasn't called, and he isn't going to...the longer we wait, the greater chance he has in hurting my daughter!" Hotch barked furiously.

"Aaron," Clyde said seriously, "No one wants to get Violet home safe more than me, _BUT,_ I need you to calm down and listen to me." He finished while making direct eye contact with Hotch the entire time.

"He doesn't want to hurt Violet, he only wants his son back; if he touches her in any way, he isn't going to get him back, and he knows that; if we let our emotions rule our heads, we're only going to put Violet at risk." Matt added addressing the whole team.

"You think he's just going to call and let us speak with her?" Dave inquired incredulously.

"He has to, he knows we have Declan here...sooner or later he's going to call." Clyde reassured the team.

"Why does he want Declan so badly if he never really cared for him?" Reid questioned.

"Because Declan is the only thing he has left that reminds him of Emily."

"Okay, we all agree that we may have to give Declan away in order to save Violet?" Morgan said with a look of horror on his face.

"You're right about that," Matt said, turning to look at him, "But, I think this son of a bitch has caused enough harm to us to let him go that easily."

"Let's destroy this bastard and get Violet home." JJ said clenching her teeth.

They began focusing on Doyle's profile again to try and figure out what his next move would be; it was more than obvious that he wanted to leave the country with Declan, and they were going to try and stop him no matter what they had to do.

Not too far from there, Doyle and his men were hiding in Doyle's abandoned childhood home. The house had been vacated for decades, but Doyle had managed to maintain it by sending housemaids once a month to clean it and keep it livable. He was now in the living room…that brought back so many memories; it wasn't like his childhood had been anything but a nightmare, but this house had special meaning to him, and it had belonged to the only person on earth he had truly cared about…his mother.

Farr walked into the house after getting some essentials they were going to need for the next few days…food, water and personal supplies. He also bought a doll, to his surprise, under Doyle's orders.

"What exactly are you planning to do with the kid Doyle, her face and yours are all over the news." He asked, tossing the doll to him.

"You'll see in time." Doyle smiled taking the doll and asking Farr to follow him.

They carefully opened the door where they have been keeping Violet. It was a simple, basic room with an old canopy bed, a trunk at the foot the bed, an old television, and a dresser. The room was also located on the second floor and facing the yard of the house. He wanted to make certain no one saw Violet if the neighbors were watching him.

"Hi, sweetheart, how are you doing?" Farr asked, smiling at Violet.

For being five years old, Violet had been surprisingly quiet and calm. Any other child her age would be screaming and freaking out. Of course, Violet had been raised by two FBI agents who had taught their children how to respond during difficult situations and to remain calm. They had shown their children that mom and dad chased the bad guys, and if they were ever in a situation where their life was at risk, remaining calm was very important so they could ask for help, or run away. Violet had inherited her parents' bravery, she knew these men were bad guys, and they had taken her, but she also knew her daddy was a hero, and he would come and get her. She knew she had to remain calm and be strong until her daddy got here.

Violet just glared at Farr and then at Doyle; she didn't like these guys, and her dad had shown her what to do in situations like this.

"You don't want to talk to us, little girl…we just want to say hello." Farr repeated waving the doll in his hand and trying to smile at her.

"I'm not supposed to talk to strangers!" Violet retorted and looked at Farr again, "Aren't you too old to play with dolls?" She asked with a burrowed brow making Doyle laugh at him.

"Shut the fuck up, Ian," He barked, "This doll is for you, but if you..."

"You aren't very nice." Violet cut him off looking at him with disgust, "And you don't smell very nice either." This time, Doyle burst into laughter.

"Petit bratt gate" ( _spoiled little brat)_ Said Farr angrily.

"I am not a brat!" Violet stated confidently looking at Farr annoyed, it helped that the little girl wasn't intimidated by them because her mother had shown her the best way to handle these situations.

"Que savez-vous d'autre en français?" ( _What else do you know in French_ ) Farr inquired. By the little girl's attitude and confidence, he could tell she spoke at least some French.

"Je peux dire mec" ( _I can say ugly man_ ). Violet narrowed her eyes at him, and once again, Doyle laughed at the girl's attitude…she was exactly like Emily and that made him smile.

"She is just as snotty as her fucking mother!" Farr barked, throwing the doll on the floor and walking away.

"Are you okay, Violet?" Doyle asked looking at her intensely.

"Who are you?" The girl asked looking at him skeptically.

"I'm a friend of your dad."

"My daddy doesn't have friends like you."

"What do you mean, love?"

"You are mean and hurt people...my daddy saves them."

"I'm not mean, Violet, in fact, I'm a very good guy." Doyle said as he tried to caress her cheek, but Violet recoiled from his touch.

"How about I let you talk to your dad?" He questioned, "But, you can't tell him anything about where you are, or anything else, or I will kill your dad." He warned… "You understand that, Violet, don't you?"

Violet just stared at him; she knew he wasn't a good guy, and he was trying to make her feel scared. She had also heard them talk about a boy in the truck. Either they were stealing another boy, or they already had…either way, she knew she had to be brave, her dad and his team would find her of that she was sure.

About five minutes later, Doyle dialed Hotch's cellphone interrupting them as they had been discussing possible areas where he was hiding, when his cellphone started ringing, Hotch looked at the screen and his heart started beating rapidly.

"It's him." He said, looking around at the team and the technical analyst who was working on the phone tracking system to be able to locate Doyle.

"Just answer him and keep calm." Dave said as they placed the phone on speaker so the entire team could hear.

"Hello, Doyle…" Hotch said as he attempted to breathe and not lose his cool.

"Hello, Agent Hotchner, I've been dreaming about this for a long time. I believe I have something that belongs to you."

"If you hurt her…!"

"Be gentle?" Doyle laughed.

"What do you want, Doyle?"

"You already know what I want, bring my son to me and you can have her back safely and unharmed."

"How do I know I can trust you?"

"I guess you're just going to have to take my word for it, Agent Hotchner."

"Let me talk to her...I need to know she's okay."

"Alright," said Doyle. Hotch then heard sounds from the muffled phone.

"Daddy!" Violet answered, "Daddy, are you there?"

"Hey, sweetheart, I'm here, baby." Hotch responded fighting the tears in his eyes.

"Are you okay, Vi, did he hurt you in any way, did he touch you?" Hotch hated to ask, but he had to know…if he had, he would kill him and cut him into pieces.

"No, I'm okay daddy, don't worry."

"Violet, sweetheart, listen to me, okay? I'll find you, okay? Just stay calm and be brave, baby, daddy is coming."

"I know, daddy, don't worry…I'm okay." Tears started running down his cheeks. He wished he could ask Violet for more information, but he knew that could put her in danger.

Suddenly, Reid approached him calling for his attention and the attention of the rest of the team…he had an idea, and he hoped it would work.

"Violet, this is Uncle Spence, how are you, sweetie?"

"I'm okay, Uncle Spence."

"Violet, we're going to find you, okay, we're coming to find you." Hotch's eyes moved to look at Spencer in shock…he had no idea what Spencer was doing, and if Doyle believed they were trying to mess with him, he would hurt Violet. Hotch was going to say something when Reid held up his hand to stop him from saying anything else.

"Violet, boreíte na mou peíte poú vrískeste?" ( _Violet, can you tell me where you are_?) Reid asked in a language no one understood. Violet quickly glanced at the men in front of her and quickly addressed Spencer.

"I'm okay, Uncle Spence, spíti xýla." ( _House, woods_ ) She said, and then Doyle snatched the phone away from her.

"That's enough talking for now!" He barked, "There you are, Agent Hotchner, your brat is alive, get me what I want, and we'll be in touch soon." Then he hung up.

"What was that?" Hotch asked, terrified that they might just have gotten Violet hurt, or worse…killed.

"She's in a house in the woods." Spencer said, running toward a map he had been working on.

"What language was that?" JJ asked, shocked and impressed as everyone else was looking at him surprised.

"Greek." Said Reid absentmindedly, his attention focused on his map and coordinates.

"Violet knows Greek?" Morgan was totally surprised.

"Not technically," Reid responded, getting back to the table with the map as everyone watched him with questioning eyes. He sat down but the eyes of the entire team were still on him.

"Emily and I were discussing this a while back." He explained, "I wanted to teach Violet Greek and Chinese, but Emily said she didn't want Violet to get confused with so many languages while she was so young, you know? She already knows French and Spanish and some Italian." Reid kept speaking rapidly.

"So, Emily told you not to teach her Greek?" JJ asked not fully understanding.

"No, she said she wanted Violet to speak fluently what she was already taking at school first, you know?" He inquired "I guess to you it doesn't make sense, but for her and me, it did." That only caused more odd looks from the team, and Spencer sighed explaining himself again. "Not that I think you are not smart or anything, it's just complicated to explain." He blurted out, but JJ giggled…her eyebrows still furrowed in confusion with what he was trying say.

"When you speak more than one language, sometimes you have to think what the response is because some words could be similar, some people confuse them or find it overwhelming. Either way, I tried to explain to Emily that the brain of a child was twice as likely to absorb and store information at an early age than when their older. 

"So, you taught Greek to Violet anyway?" Dave concluded.

"I didn't do it to contradict Emily, I just wanted her to know some words and phrases she could use as a code. Or…just…I don't know."

"Different languages, more than a few she could use in case she was ever in a position such as today." Said Aaron to Spencer, his eyes were sparkling with gratitude.

"I guess, yeah, sometimes children can use key words to communicate if they're in trouble, but they don't always do it because they're afraid to ask for help if they are in front of someone."

"Thank you, Spencer." Hotch said, truly grateful for the genius.

"So, Violet is in a house by the woods; we need to find where and what meaning it has to Doyle." Matt continued making sure everyone got back on topic.

"Yeah, I'm checking the perimeter around Washington looking to see if Doyle had any properties that could tell us where he has her." Reid said getting back into the topic.

They spent at least one more hour trying to track Doyle and were running out of patience and time. If they didn't come to an agreement with him soon, things could get really dicey. They had brought Declan to Quantico, and they were waiting for Doyle to make contact with them again. Their goal was to capture Doyle before they could surrender the boy without risking harm to Violet or Declan.

The phone began ringing again, as everyone was suiting up to meet Doyle. They were sure Doyle was going to try to attack them, so they wanted to make sure everyone, including Declan, was wearing the proper equipment.

"We have Declan, and he's safe." Was Matt's way of answering the phone.

"Well, well, well, Agent Cruz, you do surprise me." Doyle laughed into the phone.

"We'll bring the boy to you, and you'll release Violet."

"See, Agent Cruz, I don't know about that, I'm the one who makes the rules here." Doyle barked angrily.

"We just want to do what is best for everyone including Declan and Violet."

"Is that why you made me believe my son was dead for eight years?"

"Doyle, let's focus on what's going on now…you want Declan, so tell us where and when." Dave stated, trying to get his attention.

"See, that would be just fine, but I've changed my mind!"

"What the hell do you want, you son of a bitch?" Hotch barked into the phone…he wanted to destroy Doyle.

"Agent Hotchner, settle down…you don't want to have to attend another funeral, do you?"

Dave grabbed Aaron by the arm and tried to make him calm down, this was strictly about saving Violet.

"I want 600 million dollars and my boy, and you can get your daughter back."

"What! Are you out your mind, this wasn't about money!" Matt said irritated.

"Oh, but it is, Agent Cruz, you're forgetting that you not only took my men down, but you also destroyed a very big transaction and that ruined my business…I'll say this is just fair."

"Doyle, that's a lot of money for me to get on the spur of the moment."

"I'm sure you can make it work…tell me…what's it going to be, Agent Cruz, her life, or the money and the boy." With that, Doyle disconnected the call.

" _ **The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it."**_

 _ **-Henry David Thoreau**_


	18. Chapter 19

**The Face of Love: Chapter Eighteen**

" _I choose my friends for their good looks, my acquaintances for their good characters, and my enemies for their good intellects." ― Oscar Wilde_

Dave grabbed Aaron by the arm and tried to make him calm down, this was strictly about saving Violet.

"I want 600 million dollars and if you bring me that and my boy, you can have your daughter back."

"What! Are you out your mind, this wasn't about money!" Matt said irritated.

"Oh, but it is, Agent Cruz, you're forgetting that you not only took my men down, but you also destroyed a very big transaction and that ruined my business…I'd say this is just fair."

"Doyle, that's a lot of money for me to get in the spur of the moment."

"I'm sure you can make it work…tell me…what's it going to be, Agent Cruz, her life, or the money and the boy." With that, Doyle disconnected the call.

"Son of a bitch!" Hotch furiously banged his fist against the wall, "I'll fucking kill him!" He was raging mad.

"Aaron, calm down, please." Dave came closer to him knowing he might punch Cruz if he did, but someone needed to calm him down.

"Agent Hotchner, we need to act rationally." Clyde stated directing his attention to him.

"Rationally! This bastard is bargaining with my daughter, what the fuck do you want me to do?"

"Aaron, stop." Dave touched his arm softly attempting to calm him down.

"He's fucking with us, Dave!" Hotch spit angrily.

"I know he is, but he has Violet; you know how dangerous these situations are...we have to be extremely careful."

"Where in the hell are we supposed to get 600 million dollars?" Morgan asked angrily still unable to believe Doyle's request.

"We can have the Bureau authorize a ransom fund; I'm sure they'll agree to it especially knowing they have Violet." Stated JJ.

"They will, but they're going to investigate us, and they'll find out we're back on this case…we could all be jeopardizing our careers." Matt informed them.

"I don't give a fuck about your career, my daughter's life is at risk because of you!" Hotch shouted loudly moving toward Cruz.

"Agent Hotchner, enough!" Matt said in a very strict tone, "I'm trying to help get Violet home…we all are, all I am saying is the Bureau is going to question a lot of things, and you know we're all skating on thin ice as it is, but everyone here is willing to take the risk, I'll make the call." Cruz announced.

"Even if we get the bureau to approve this transaction, it's not going to happen overnight." Dave stated, "Doyle is taunting us, he knows we're all being investigated, he's doing this intentionally."

"Okay, so how do we get the money then?" Morgan asked, six hundred million dollars was a lot of money to come up with in the next couple of hours.

"I can pull it out of my saving funds, and I know people I could come up with the money." Dave suggested without hesitation, "I can get the money."

"Dave, I don't want to put you in that position." Aaron said, looking at his best friend, six hundred million dollars was a lot of money for David Rossi.

"Then, we'll come up with it, we can put our houses up…whatever we have to do, we need to save Violet." Said JJ confidently.

"There is a possibility we could use…" Said Clyde eyeing the team, but then he turned to look at Hotch, "But you might not like the idea."

"The ambassador." He read Clyde perfectly well.

"She has the money, after all, Violet is her granddaughter." Clyde continued to speak, "I know what happened between Emily and her mother and how long it's been since they've talked, but we're talking about saving Violet."

Hotch sighed looking at them for a second, he knew Emily and her mother had stopped speaking a long time ago, before they had met each other. He also knew the relationship had further deteriorated over time, so he wasn't even sure the ambassador knew of Violet's existence; but he knew they had to do something for his daughter and soon. He then remembered something else...

"There's something else that wouldn't involve calling the ambassador directly..." he pointed out, running his hand over his hair frustrated…everyone was watching him and waiting to hear what it was.

"Emily has...had…" He corrected himself; "She had a trust fund her father set up for her when she was a child for her education and for whatever she would need in her life. Emily never wanted anything do with it because of her relationship with her mother, but the trust fund was never touched even though her grandfather invested in it as well. It's been untouched all these years."

"You knew about this?" JJ asked, surprised that she had no idea about any of this, she knew about Emily's relationship with her mother and the one with her grandfather. She knew both her grandfather and her mother were both very wealthy people, as was her father before he passed away when she was a child.

"I did, but Emily never wanted anything to do with." He informed his friends, "So, it's just sitting there untouched."

"But, you'll need some kind of authorization to access the fund, right?" JJ asked still surprised, "Like her mother's signature?"

"Not necessarily." Reid inquired, speaking to them. "You're her husband, and most trust funds that had never been cashed out would automatically transfer to the current spouse, or, upon that person's death any remaining children." He said, his last few words barely audible as if he didn't want to be heard.

"That would mean the fund is now yours, as legal guardian until Violet comes of age, whatever age is designated." Morgan concluded.

"Until she's considered an adult, yes." Clyde said, "Her legal guardian or immediate parent would have access to it." Clyde turned to look at Hotch.

"We'll have to go to my house and find out where that information is, or possibly our safe deposit at the bank." He addressed the team, "I knew about the existence of this fund, but I have no idea where it is, so we'll have to dig to find it.

"Why don't you take Dave with you, and the rest of us can stay here and keep looking for his location." Morgan stated looking at everyone.

Aaron and Dave headed to his house to look for the documents he needed. As they drove away from the BAU, he couldn't get something off his mind; there was something that was bothering him about all of this, but he couldn't put a finger on it.

"We're going to get her, Aaron, I promise you." Dave vowed, "We'll use what she has in the trust fund, and I'll cover the rest…you know I will, you guys are family." Dave said.

"I know Dave, I appreciate it, and it's not that…" He said as he drove away, "She has more than six hundred million dollars in that fund is never been touched, whatever her father and grandfather left her after their death is on that found."

"What? You think Doyle knows about the fund!?" Dave inquired surprised.

"He found out about the cabin, he knew who her grandfather was, and he tracked any transactions he made before he died."

"So, you think he took Violet because of the money?" Dave asked trying to understand.

"I don't know Dave, something isn't right about this. Doyle doesn't need the money, so what does he really want?" 

"To create a distraction maybe?" Dave suggested, "Trust fund or not, we aren't going to get that money today. It will take a day or so to transfer the money."

"So, he's buying time..." Aaron threw in, "Why? He said he wanted Declan…that was why he returned."

Dave pulled out his cellphone and called the team; they needed to get everyone's thoughts about this.

"Dave, you're on speaker." Morgan said placing his cellphone in the middle of the table in the conference room.

"Doyle is one of the biggest arms dealers in the world, money's not a problem to him, so why do this?"

"He said he wanted us to pay for the deal he lost, but that deal was nothing compared with the amount of money he has." Reid mentioned casually

"Then why ask for money...it doesn't make sense." Said JJ.

"We think he's trying to use it as a distraction, what if he's trying to take Violet away or something like that."

"Let me call Garcia and see if she can track any properties that are associated with Doyle, along with any money transactions he has made" JJ told them, as she watched Matt and Clyde speak between themselves, they disconnected the call, and JJ turned to look at them.

"Is everything okay?" JJ questioned, confused.

"Yes, my team needs help in London, something completely unrelated to this situation." Clyde said, stepping out of the conference room.

"Jennifer, get Garcia to track any real estate, properties, cars, anything, that can be traced back to Doyle." Said Matt, going after Clyde. When they were far enough away so the team couldn't hear them.

"We're not going to call her." He said dangerously. "If Emily knows he has taken Violet, she's going to come here, and we're risking not only Emily's life, but also Violet's."

"Matt, he's playing with us, he doesn't need the money, but he's not going to give up on Violet either the bastard is fucking with us."

"Clyde, what if he knows about Emily, that she's alive." Matt said, looking at him.

"There's no way that he knows, we staged her funeral, and we have a death certificate for her, I made sure of that it was the only way Aaron and everyone else was going to believe it."

"Clyde, trust funds are set up with alerts going to the 'owner' of the trust fund in case of security breaches, and if Hotch attempts to cash that fund it's going to alert the person who established or owns the trust fund. Even if she is _dead,_ there will still be an alert issued to her at her last known address, or last means to contact her contained in the documents; if by any chance Emily sees this alert and tries to open the alert or email..." Matt started but wasn't able to finish.

"He's going to track her, he's testing us, he wants to know if she's really dead, or if we staged her death just like we did with Declan." Clyde concluded "

Matt pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed frantically…

"Hotchner, it's Cruz, listen I just spoke to Kramer, he's authorizing the transaction to pay the ransom for Violet."

"What?" Hotch said in shock looking at Dave, "When did you call him?"

"I just did, we need to keep on moving, just come back and meet me here, and we'll call Doyle to bring Violet to us." Cruz said as he hung up his phone.

"What in the bloody hell are you doing, you can't authorize this transaction by yourself!"

"If I lose my job, I'll live with it, but if he kills Violet or Emily, this time I won't be able to forgive myself, and you know Emily wouldn't forgive us if something happens to Violet." Cruz retorted

Cruz and Clyde walked back inside the conference room where JJ, Morgan and Reid were discussing possible locations Doyle could have the girl.

"What's going on?" Spencer asked with a furrowed brow.

"Nothing, I just talked with Kramer, and he authorized the transaction to rescue Violet." Matt lied.

"Really? Just like that?" Morgan asked surprised.

"Well, there's going to be a long investigation process, but I convinced him we couldn't risk the life a child." Matt felt terrible lying to them, but if they knew the truth, they would be furious, and right now they needed to rescue Violet.

Hotch and Dave rushed into the conference room when they arrived back at the BAU and found the team talking to one of the Deputy Sheriffs assigned to them in the search for Violet.

"What's going on?" Said Dave as they walked back in.

"They have nothing yet, they haven't attempted to cross any borders, the airport has been notified not to release any flights until every person flying out has been identified." Morgan related to them as he placed his phone in his pocket. Before anyone could any anything else, his cellphone started ringing.

"Doyle," He said as he placed the phone on speaker.

"Agent Hotchner, you have my money yet?" Doyle asked.

"We have the money right here, Doyle, tell us where you are, and we'll bring the money and the boy to you." Cruz said, cutting Hotch off as the brunette man watched him with an angered face.

"Good to see you can keep your promise, I'll call you tomorrow with a location and time to meet, Agent Cruz." And with that he hung up again.

"What the hell is wrong with you, are you out of your fucking mind!" Hotch spat angrily, attempting to hit Cruz.

"Hotchner!" He yelled loudly, "He's not going to hurt her, this is a trap, Doyle doesn't want the money, he's just trying to distract us."

"I fucking know this is a trap, but if he hurts Violet..."

"If he wanted the money, he would have told us right away where to meet him...instead, he said _'I will call you tomorrow'._ " 

"He wants to take Violet out of Washington…" Hotch finally caught on.

"Garcia, please tell me what you have on Doyle." Cruz said after he quickly dialed the analyst's phone.

"Nothing, sir, I've got nothing...there isn't any kind of real estate under his name, and I really went deep, sir, I'm not saying just on him, but I checked all the aliases he had before Chuck Murray, the Irish king, but he could really be anywhere, not just in the states."

"Okay, well, it has to be somewhere here in D.C., right, did he and Emily ever live anywhere in D.C.?"

"Not that I know of, they met in Boston a few times, that's basically where she first made contact with him."

"Garcia, did you run Declan's name?" Clyde asked.

"I did, the only property that appears in the boy's name is the cabin he took Emily to, her grandfather's cabin."

"Guys, he took Emily to a place that reminded her of her childhood, right, this is a kind if psychological torture, what if he is doing the same with Violet?"

"But he doesn't know anything about Violet, at least nothing that he can use to hurt her." Hotch said unconvinced.

"No, I'm not saying something that will bring memories to Violet, I mean something that would bring memories to him." Reid clarified. 

"Garcia, look for anything in his past, relatives, or anything before he became a terrorist."

"Okay," Garcia said nervously, as her fast fingers tapped on her computer. "His father abandoned him and his mother when he was seven; they truly never had a relationship, and he really hated his father and never spoke to him again after he left when Doyle was a child. His father was later killed by an accidental house fire." The analyst said horrified, "I'm going to guess that was no accident...um, his mother, Enia Doyle, died from cancer when he was fifteen. There are no properties under her name. Not in the states anyway." She finished reading.

"Can you check properties under his father's name?"

"Ummm, Vincent Doyle was accused of sexual assault on a fourteen-year-old girl, but the girl never testified against him." She started reading, "The creepiest part of all of this is their parents forced them to get married...and...'

"How much do you want to bet that girl was his mother?" Dave guessed, as everyone listened intently.

"His father later lived in Ireland, then moved to the States where he worked for a construction company. He later was found dead in his house that had burned to the ground...so the house was destroyed."

"Are there any other properties in his name?"

"Vincent Doyle." Garcia said as she tapped away on her keys.

"There is a small property in Gallatin County, Montana, it was occupied until Doyle's mother died from cancer, then the house was abandoned."

"Has the state taken over the house, Garcia?" Morgan asked.

"No, the neighbors stated a cleaning lady comes to care for the house once a month; they believe someone was possibly living there, and, oh God!" She said in a scared voice.

"What's going on?" JJ and Morgan both asked.

"The property is in a very large area covered by woods and land..."

"He has to have Violet there, if his face is all over the news, there's nowhere else he could go." Clyde told them.

"Cruz, I know we all want the best outcome on this, but you know at some point we might have to give Declan to him, so we can save Violet." Morgan intervened; as much as he wanted to save both children, they knew they might have to make another decision at some point.

"I know, we're taking Declan with us, we're going to do everything in our power to save Violet without having to risk giving Declan over to him...but, if it comes to a situation..." Cruz wasn't even able to finish the sentence.

"Let's go, I'll have the marshals meet us at the tarmac with Declan." Hotch ordered and everyone followed after him.

The plane ride was quieter than ever. Hotch was on the verge of losing his mind, and every single comment set him off making him snap at everyone, including Dave, his best friend, and JJ. They decided to leave him alone, it was understandable that he was stressed and worried about his daughter, they all were.

They could only hope everything was okay and they found Violet, so they could bring her home safely, and not have to put Declan's life at risk. JJ had been talking with Declan during most of the flight; the boy was obviously frightened because he had no idea what was going on and why he suddenly had been taken out of his house. Thankfully, JJ and Reid had done an amazing job keeping the boy distracted and calming the entire plane. Now, Declan was sleeping on one of the plane seats.

"I hate that we have to use a child to negotiate." JJ said angrily, watching as the boy slept, his face resting on her lap as she caressed his curly blonde hair.

"JJ, I know how you feel, I don't want to do this either, but he has Violet, your goddaughter." Dave reminded her.

"I know, Dave, I know, I'll do anything to get her home. I just hate this, he's a good kid, and he finally has the life Emily wanted him to have." She said as tears pooled in her eyes, "She lived with a terrorist for two years to protect Declan, and then she found him a safe place, so he never had to follow in his father's footsteps."

"Let's focus on getting both back safely, okay?" Dave squeezed her arm softly.

By the time they arrived in Boston, it was past ten at night, and as much as they wanted to go to a hotel and rest, they knew they were running out of time and had to soldier on. They were now driving in two separate SUVs to the location the property was on. The Boston Police Department was already with them, and the detective had agreed with them to handle this as discreetly as possible without alerting any of Doyle's people.

"JJ, I want you to stay behind in the truck with the officers and Declan." Cruz ordered.

"But Cruz..."

"We're not taking the boy in until we know Violet is safe; Doyle doesn't know we're coming, so most likely we're going to catch them off guard." Hotch told her agreeing with Cruz for the first time in a very long time.

Quietly, they arrived at the property; they had to take down two of the men Doyle had at the entrance of the 6,000-acre property. The place was very quiet and looked abandoned. The only lead they had was, in fact, in Boston…it was a surveillance video Penelope had managed to retrieve from a nearby store showing one of the men Doyle had been seen with at the airstrip where Emily was killed.

They parked behind the wooded area and started walking toward the house. JJ was waiting in the truck with two officers and Declan, as she watched Clyde, Cruz, Morgan, Dave, Spencer and Hotch along with four other officers approach Doyle's property. The house was completely dark, and they separated into groups, so they could go in from different directions to the house.

Hotch took the back with one of the officers, he carefully walked around the trashed yard, scanning around; the only sign they had of anyone living there were the bags of trash next to the trashcans. He heard shots coming from other side of the house and knew they needed to rush in; Hotch kicked in the back door and walked in, the smell of mold and mildew filling his nostrils. He scanned the small back foyer with the officer following him taking the right-side heading to the kitchen, and him taking the side that lead toward some kind of hall. The house was evidently old and almost falling apart, but it seemed as if someone had kept the house going for years. He was about to turn to the right when something very big hit him on the back of the head and everything went black.

" _ **Vengeance is not the point; change is. But the trouble is that in most people's minds the thought of victory and the thought of punishing the enemy coincide."**_

 _ **Barbara Deming  
**_


	19. Chapter twenty

**The Face of Love: Chapter Nineteen**

" _Vengeance is not the point; change is. But the trouble is that in most people's minds the thought of victory and the thought of punishing the enemy coincide."_

 _-Barbara Deming_

Hotch took the back with one of the officers and Cruz, he carefully walked around the trashed yard, and looking around, the only sign he had of anyone living there were the bags of trash next to the trashcans. He heard the shots on the other side of the house and knew they needed to rush in; he kicked in the backdoor and walked in, the smell of mold and mildew filling his nostrils. He scanned the small back foyer with Cruz following him taking the right-side heading into the kitchen, and him taking the side that lead toward some kind of hall. The house was evidently old and almost falling apart, but it seemed as if someone had kept the house going through the years. Hotch was about to turn to the right when something very big hit him on the back of the head and everything went black.

Clyde was at the front of the property and had managed to shoot the two men guarding the front door, but they had managed to shoot him in the leg just as he got his shot off. Now, he was reaching to cover the wound while Dave tried to assist him to get up.

"I need a medic in the front, I have an officer down." He said softly into his mic.

"Copy that" said one of the Boston P.D. officers.

"Dave, what happened, are you okay, do you want us to come back?" Morgan asked concerned, ready to turn back and go help.

"Don't come back," Clyde said almost out of breath, "I'm fine, just keep looking for Violet."

"Okay, man." Morgan continued his path on the first floor of the house with Reid on the right behind him; he held his gun up as the small flashlight illuminated everything. Suddenly, he pointed to a corner of the living room…on top of the coffee table something was covered by a white sheet, and he turned to glance at Reid hoping it wasn't what he was thinking. But, his heart only started racing faster when he uncovered the object…on top of the coffee table sat a large, wired electronic device with a running clock with red numbering.

"It's a bomb!" Exclaimed Reid.

"Goddammit, guys, we need to evacuate as soon as possible, it's a trap!" Morgan called into his radio frantically.

"It's not set to go off for another 30 minutes." Reid said looking closely.

"Sure, let's just wait until it's five seconds before it's set to explode, then we can evacuate." Morgan said aggravated.

"That's not what I said...I might be able to deactivate this..."

"Reid..." Morgan said, unsure.

"Just shut up, okay!" Reid answered annoyed as he focused on the mechanism of the bomb.

"Hotch, Cruz, do you copy?" Morgan asked, but there was no response.

"I'm here, Morgan, second floor," Cruz responded, "Hotch was downstairs."

"Hotch, do you copy" He repeated starting to feel worried.

"It's okay, go find him, I'll be fine." Spencer said nervously.

"I'm not leaving you, kid." Derek said, looking him in the eyes.

"Do you want to get Violet or not?"

"No one is going to get out of here if we don't deactivate this...tell me what I can do, I can help you, I did this in the military."

"Morgan, no offense, but I need you to shut up." The kid responded as he focused on the wires covering the bomb.

"All right, kid, I just think we should save Violet and get the hell out of here."

"Morgan, we can't live if this thing goes off," The genius gulped, "It's designed to cover at least a 10-mile radius."

"The entire building and everything in it are going up if it goes off." Morgan said as he felt his heart drop.

Meanwhile, Cruz continued his way upstairs. He had cleared a few rooms already, but he hadn't found anyone. He knew they had taken at least six men down between the entrance to the land and all the way inside the house. If Doyle had managed to leave already with the little girl, they would have noticed. He slowly made his way to the next room, and there lying on the bed was Violet, his heart dropped as he watched her unconscious form.

"I have Violet in a room upstairs." He called on his mic.

"Cruz, we have a situation here…" Said Morgan as Spencer snatched his radio away from his ear.

"Okay, send someone up here as soon as you can," And made his way over to Violet lying on the bed; he picked up the girl and realized she was still breathing…very slowly, but she was still breathing. They needed to get out of there as soon as possible.

"Violet, wake up, sweetheart." He said to her softly while holding her unconscious body.

"Don't worry, Agent Cruz, she's alive for now." Doyle said coming from the closet in the room, holding a gun. Cruz attempted to place Violet down, so he could reach for his gun, but Doyle deactivated the safety on his gun before Cruz could shoot.

"If you move, I'll shoot her," He warned, "Drop your gun, Agent Cruz, drop it and kick it toward me."

"What do you want and what did you do to her?" Cruz barked, placing his gun down and doing as Doyle asked knowing his main focus was to save Violet.

"It's a sedative, don't worry, I'm not a monster."

"What do you want, Doyle?" Cruz attempted to keep his focus, "We have Declan and the money outside, let me get Violet out of here." He stated as calmly as he could.

"I don't know, Agent Cruz, you don't seem to follow directions very well. You were supposed to wait for my call tomorrow, and here you are." Doyle stated, walking around the room as he kept his gun pointed at Cruz who still had the sleeping girl in his arms.

"Let her go, please, she has nothing to do with this." He begged.

"I think you have something I want."

"I'll call them to bring Declan here, but we have to get Violet out of here, she needs to be seen by a doctor." Cruz said as his eyes focused on Violet.

"She's going to be fine, it's a sleeping sedative, she's not in any danger." Doyle assured him, Cruz placed Violet down again, he couldn't do much with the girl on his arms.

They heard the cracking of something downstairs and the distraction forced Doyle to look away long enough for Cruz to lunge at him in an attempt to take him down. Doyle fell to the floor with Cruz on top of him, and both men started wrestling; Doyle managed to get up first hitting Cruz on the head with his gun.

"I should just kill you now, Agent Cruz." He threatened, as he stood up pointing at Cruz

"Then go for it, I'm not afraid of you, asshole." Cruz bit back, only making Doyle laugh.

"Give me what I want, and you can walk out of here with that little monster." He said angrily, kicking Cruz in the stomach.

"I told you I'll only have them bring in Declan if you let Violet go first…you said you wanted the money and the boy."

"See, Agent Cruz, you aren't as smart as I thought you were, I don't need your money." Doyle laughed.

"Then what the hell do you want, Doyle?" Matt asked as he attempted to get up, but Doyle punched him in the face again.

"You really think you're smart, don't you, Agent Cruz?" He asked sarcastically.

"What did you do to make the FBI authorize the transaction for the six hundred million dollars?" He asked looking at him.

"Why the fuck does it matter to you how we got it, we got the money for you."

"See, but it does matter, Agent Cruz, none of you have that kind of money...unless you reached out to her high-and-mighty Ambassador mother." He said with an evil grin.

"Doyle, the money is ready, it doesn't matter how we got it, take it and the boy and let Violet go."

"How do I know you aren't fucking with me?"

"The money is outside in one of the SUVs along with the boy. I keep my word, I'm not going to lie to you."

"You almost believe that yourself, Agent Cruz, but you did lie about my son being dead."

"Interpol did that in order to protect your son." Cruz stated; his mouth was bleeding, and he was almost certain he had a concussion…where in the hell was Hotch and Rossi.

"But then I found out it was Emily who managed to take my son and put him into protective custody." Doyle said angrily

"She was saving your son from all the hell he would have gone through; they would have killed him just to make you talk."

"So, you help her staged his death and then Emily's death, of course." Doyle barked hitting him one more time but barely touching him.

"Let Violet go."

"Lauren Reynolds died in car accident eight years ago, right? Didn't she Agent Cruz"

"Doyle, take what you want and let the child go, let me make the call."

"I don't want Declan anymore, or the money." Doyle's blue eyes sparkled evilly.

"What do you want?" Matt asked screaming in exasperation.

"You know, what I want" He smiled sarcastically "Just tell me something Agent Cruz?"

"Why didn't Hotchner go after her trust fund? Why use the money from the FBI found, when Emily's fund could have been cashed out" He asked Cruz. "Is there a reason why you stop them from using that money?

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes you do" He asked, laughing at him. "Where is she?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Cruz repeated.

Hotch woke up with excruciating pain in his head and reached to touch the top of his head feeling the wet warm blood. He stood up feeling dizzy and nauseous, but he had to find Violet, he knew adrenaline would keep him going.

"Don't you fucking lie to me!" Doyle shouted angrily throwing Cruz to the floor again, making his phone slide across the wooden floor.

"You staged her death once, what is to stop you from doing it again." He asked angrily, "Then I realized Easter never made it to her funeral, there must been a pretty strong reason."

"He was working, I don't know what that has to do with anything."

"You can tell me where she is, or I can kill Violet." Doyle said, approaching the bed and aiming his gun at Violet's head.

"Doyle, I have no idea what you're talking about, and you'll never make it out of here, you know that." At that, Doyle shot him in the arm knocking him back to the floor.

Doyle laughed sarcastically and hit Cruz on the head again with his gun almost knocking him unconscious. Doyle then picked Cruz's cellphone up from the floor and began re-dialing numbers non-stop.

"No...stop, please." Cruz begged, attempting to get up

"I'm looking for Emily." Doyle stated, frantically dialing numbers. "Hello, darling, is that you?"

He called the last numbers Cruz had called on his cellphone until he reached one with the name of Gregory no last name; he quickly remembered Emily's grandfather's name was Gregory, so he dialed that number.

"Hey, Matt, I was taking a shower earlier when you called." Emily said in a rush.

"Hello, love, it's so nice to talk to you again." Ian Doyle's voice made her drop the cup of tea she was holding, and she hung up the phone, terrified. She knew if Doyle had Cruz's phone that could only mean Cruz was dead, and Doyle was after her again. She quickly ran to the safe she had in her hotel room and pulled out several documents, including passports set up for her in case of an emergency.

"It seems like I found her…" Doyle smiled evilly.

"She's never going to tell you where she is." Cruz said, out of breath and almost out of energy; his fight with Doyle had taken so much out of him, and now he was also shot.

"Oh, she will, trust me." Still holding the phone, he snapped a picture of Violet lying unconscious on the bed and sent it to the number he had just called.

"No, please…nooo..." Matt asked hearing footsteps approaching and voices calling him from far away.

"Hotch, up here." Cruz called as loud as he could, and a second later the phone began ringing.

"Hello, love, I knew you would call me." Doyle smiled at the fun he was having.

"If you touch her...I swear, you have no idea what I will do to you." Emily warned dangerously

"Oh, love, don't worry, it's not her that I want. I want YOU, how about you turn yourself in to save your daughter."

"No, Emily, don't tell him anything!" Cruz shouted, but Doyle kicked him in the stomach again.

"I'll come to you, but please leave Violet alone." She begged and then told him where to meet her.

"Okay, love, see you soon." He said, throwing the phone on the floor. Then, he heard footsteps approaching and moving fast, before Hotch started firing shots at him, he managed to jump out the open window to the roof and then onto the ground. Hotch kept shooting at him, but it was too dark, and he couldn't see to hit him.

"Violet." Hotch rushed to his daughter's side and picked her up in his arms.

"God… no baby, please…" He begged, crying and holding an unconscious Violet in his arms.

"She's fine, she's just asleep, he sedated her." Cruz said, spitting blood; Hotch quickly checked her pulse and then rushed to Cruz.

"Morgan, send a medic here, now!"

"I'm okay." Cruz said, trying to stand up, "We've got to go."

Morgan rushed upstairs with one of the paramedics with Dave behind him.

"Take Violet, please, she was sedated." Hotch begged as he helped the paramedic put pressure on Cruz's wound.

"He's gone." Hotch said, "He jumped out the window, but I couldn't see which direction he went in, or where he went."

"Hotch, we have to leave now, Reid can't deactivate the bomb."

"What bomb!?" He asked in shock.

"The entire house was a trap, man, Dave got struck when he fell inside the porch." Hotch turned to see his friend covered in blisters with blood coming from his eyebrow.

"Are you okay?" He asked, once Cruz was up and walking slowly; he held out his arm to Cruz, so he could walk.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Easter was shot, too." Dave said, helping them so they could hurry out.

They all came downstairs to see Reid looking at them with a panicked face, but holding a piece of wire on his hand.

"It's off, one the cables was designed to burn the fuel that activated the bomb in order for it to cause enough damage…see most thermonuclear weapons are usually..."

"Reid, please…" Hotch stopped him.

"Right, right, let me call JJ, and the ambulance is already outside waiting for Violet and Cruz." The genius said as he disappeared out the door.

Violet was placed on a gurney and immediately given fluids by the EMTs. The other two EMTs were focused on Cruz and the wounds he had sustained. Easter was already using a crutch to move around, even though he had been told not to move, and JJ was running to them as the other two officers had stayed with Declan.

Violet was slowly waking up, and Hotch stood next to her holding her hand and kissing her forehead. He hadn't been able to breath or think properly since Doyle had taken Violet.

"Hey, sweetheart." He said with his eyes full of tears as Violet's sleepy eyes focused on him.

"Daddy, I knew you would come." She smiled, and then her daddy was hugging her close; JJ was crying at the sight of Hotch and his daughter reunited, silently thanking God that Violet was still alive and fine.

"So, he set all of these traps for nothing?" Morgan asked angrily. "This is the second time he's gotten away…he didn't want to take either Violet or Declan?"

Cruz focused his eyes on Easter, and Clyde knew exactly what that look meant; Doyle was after her. JJ approached Hotch who was still holding Violet in his arms as the paramedics gave her more fluids and medication to reduce the effects of the sedatives.

"JJ, will you stay with her for a second, please?" He said, turning to look at the blonde profiler.

"Of course."

Hotch made his way over to the gurney Cruz was sitting on; Cruz obviously had taken a bad beating, and even after everything that had happened between them, he was grateful to him…Cruz had really helped save Violet's life and had put both his life and his job at risk to do so.

"We'll get him." He heard Easter tell Cruz as they both exchanged looks. Reid, Dave and Morgan were talking to the police officers and given their statements.

"I agree, we'll get him, but I think now you should go to the hospital and let them look at you."

"I'm okay, I we don't have time to go to the hospital, we need to go after him." Cruz insisted.

"Matt, I really appreciate everything you've done, but I really think you need to see a doctor."

"He's going after her!" Cruz blurted.

"Matt…" Clyde warned, but the look the Deputy Director threw his way made him back off.

"What? After who?" Hotch asked confused.

"He's going after Emily, he knows where she is?" He said, hopping down from the gurney on which he had been sitting.

"What did you just say!?" Hotch asked, thinking he had heard wrong; Cruz had told him Doyle hit him in the head several times, so he was probably hallucinating.

"Emily is alive, and he's going after her!"

 _ **A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on. Winston Churchill**_


	20. Chapter 20

_**The Face of Love: Chapter Twenty**_

" _We all talk about how much we hate lies. Yet we prefer, so often, to be lied to...because it allows us to dodge all those painful truths we'd rather not hear."- Douglas Kennedy_

Hotch made his way over to the gurney Cruz was sitting on; Cruz had taken a bad beating, and even after everything that had happened between them, Hotch was grateful to him…Cruz had helped save Violet's life and put both his life and his job at risk to do so.

"We'll get him." He heard Easter tell Cruz as they both exchanged looks. Reid, Dave, and Morgan were talking to the police officers giving their statements.

"I agree, we'll get him, but I think now you should go to the hospital and let them look at you."

"I'm okay, I…we don't have time to go to the hospital, we need to go after him." Cruz insisted.

"Matt, I appreciate everything you've done, but I think you need to see a doctor."

"He's going after her!" Cruz blurted.

"Matt…" Clyde warned, but the look the Deputy Director threw his way made him back off.

"What? After who?" Hotch asked confused.

"He's going after Emily, he knows where she is?" He said, hopping down from the gurney on which he had been sitting.

"What did you just say!?" Hotch asked, thinking he had heard wrong; Cruz had told him Doyle hit him in the head several times, so he was probably hallucinating.

"Emily is alive, and Doyle's going after her," Cruz replied.

Hotch's world stopped moving, his ears started ringing, and his heart dropped to the floor; this had to be a dream. For some reason, he couldn't understand what his ears had just heard.

"What? She's…alive?" Hotch repeated, his voice barely audible.

"Aaron..." Matt started.

"She is alive? She is…" He repeated in shock. "You lied to me?" Hotch barked! "How could you do this? He launched himself at the Section Chief.

"Calm down, Agent Hotchner." Clyde intervened, standing between both agents.

"And you!" Hotch pointed angrily at the Brit, "You knew she was alive all this time?" He had never been so angry in his entire life.

"This wasn't about you or any of us, Agent Hotchner." Clyde continued, "This was about keeping Emily safe."

"I am her husband!" He barked, ready to kick Clyde's ass. But, just as he was about to approach the British man, Dave and Morgan came around and stopped Hotch from going any further.

"What the hell is going on?" Dave asked confused, holding his best friend.

"I'm going to kill this son of a bitch!" The dark-haired man replied furiously.

"Whoa, Hotch, calm down man." Morgan intervened, not sure why the Unit Chief was so angry, but he sure didn't like the sound of _"I'm going to kill this son of a bitch_ ".

"Did you know about this? Hotch's glare focused on Rossi.

"Know what?"

"Emily! Did you know about Emily?"

"Look, we don't have time to discuss this." Clyde urged. "All I can tell you is that she is alive and in danger, we need to go find her."

"Wait! What?" Morgan turned around looking just as confused as Hotch was. Dave, who had a slight suspicion of this, just turned to face Matt with questioning eyes.

"As I said, I would love to discuss this all night agents, but we have to find her, Doyle is going after her."

"You'd better start making sense and explain yourself if you want to go anywhere alive!" Morgan threatened in a tone Hotch had never heard.

"We had to make Doyle think Emily was dead…it was the only way to keep her safe, at least, until we captured him." Clyde began.

"Are you fucking serious?" Morgan asked just as angry as Hotch.

"He would have killed Violet or Agent Hotchner if we hadn't faked her death," Matt explained.

"He almost _DID_ kill Violet; he went after my daughter," Hotch said, still livid.

"Aaron," Matt stated in a serious manner placing his hand out to make the unit chief stop talking, "I know you're angry, and I understand that, but the fact of the matter is that Emily is alive and Doyle is going after her, we need to go now!" He stated, turning to Reid who had just finished with the police.

"Agent Reid, can you go with Agent Jareau and make sure Violet is cared for, and after that, she and Declan need to be placed in protective custody.

"What is going on?" Reid, who still didn't know what was happening, asked very confused.

"Just do it, Spence, go with JJ and keep them safe," Dave said to him.

"Aaron…?" The genius asked; he never really called the unit chief by his name, but he didn't understand what was going on.

"Emily is alive...her death was faked to keep her safe..." He explained, still not understanding himself.

"But, we buried her." The young profiler said this could not be true.

"Spence, we're as confused as you are, but if we don't leave now…" Dave said, touching the young man briefly, "Please go with JJ and we'll keep you updated."

Reid nodded and turned toward where JJ was already inside the ambulance taking Violet to the hospital, while the rest of them rushed toward the SUVs.

"Where is she?" Hotch asked, following them with Morgan and Dave on his tail.

"We don't know where she is." Clyde stated carefully, "Doyle called Emily while we were inside, and she agreed to meet him if he left Violet alone."

Hotch's head was spinning a hundred miles a minute…Emily was alive! His sweet, kind Emily was alive? What the hell was in the casket then? His brain was so clouded he couldn't think.

"Where was she hiding?" Dave asked, he had an inkling that Emily was alive this entire time; he just never said anything until he was 100% sure. But still, there were a few things that didn't make sense. First, the way Clyde acted after Emily's death, as if nothing had happened, and second, they had not been allowed to see the coffin. Matt insisted they should remember Emily being alive, and last, the way Matt insisted on doing everything for the funeral and the team wasn't involved in any of it.

"Greece for a while, Panama, and the last I heard, she was in Ukraine."

"So, you've been in contact with her?" Morgan asked incredulously, wanting to kill Clyde.

"Clyde was the only one who had contact with her," Matt said truthfully.

"Emily turned herself in as an exchange for Violet." Dave quickly placed together. "So, where will she go to meet him?"

"Boston?" Morgan inquired. "That's where she first met him right?"

"No." Clyde said, as he started the SUV, "Emily won't meet him there; she knows that's the first place we'll look."

"We need to change our profile," Matt said as he started driving away. He wasn't sure where they were going, but staying in the woods was probably not a smart idea.

"We profile Emily," Hotch said shivering, even though he wasn't sure he wanted to go there.

"Emily made contact with him in Boston, but she didn't become involved with him right away." Morgan started, his profiler mind already working on overdrive.". She found a way to gain his trust, that means she probably already knew everything about him, his weaknesses and even things he liked that no one else knew…like collecting golf balls, or whatever people do."

"Emily was very good at what she did, she managed to make Doyle fall in love with her," Clyde said making Hotch want to throw up.

"Doyle was religious." Matt stated, "Well, he was attached to the church" he rephrased when the team looked at him.

"He gave Emily the gimmel rings," Clyde added suddenly.

"Wait! He proposed to her?" Dave asked baffled, turning to look at Hotch whose expression reflected the same shock at his.

"Not exactly." The British man said, "He asked her to raise Declan and have a life with him, but Emily said no."

"He didn't take that well, I assume." Morgan inquired.

"He was really in love with her, he still is," Hotch said in a voice barely audible, it was very hard for him to admit another person was in love with his wife.

"He's not in love with her." Clyde said smirking, "He's obsessed with her, deliriously obsessed with her…the bastard will do anything to have her."

"So, Emily is one of the smartest people I know, she wouldn't just run off with him; she's going to meet him somewhere that's special for him but not for her." Dave said, thinking, "Did she ever talk about a church that he frequented, an Italian Church?

"What are you thinking, Dave?" Hotch asked, turning to look at his best friend.

"Well, "gimmel" is an anglicized translation of the Latin word for gemmelus which is basically "soulmate". Its characteristic clasped hands are a symbol of fidelity as they cover and protect the heart of the beloved one." He told them. "If Doyle gave it to her if Doyle was religious, this meant a promise to God to have her."

Hotch pulled his phone from his pocket dialing a number.

"Oh my God!" The panicked voice of Garcia came over the phone. "OH MY GOD, what is going on? Reid won't tell me anything, and you guys are on the chase for Doyle, and he said you have to go find her? Who is her? What is he talking about?"

"Garcia!" Hotch almost shouted, "Not now, I need you to find any affiliation Doyle had with churches...any donations he might have made, or charities...anything you can find."

"Umm, okay," Garcia said confused, as she began to type on her keyboard.

"Sir, there is a St. Cecilia Roman Catholic Church and each month a donation is received in the name of Declan Doyle, and they are very generous…I mean, I could live on one of these donations… generous."

"Do you have an address?"

"I'm sending it to your phones now, and Sir, I need to know..."

"Thanks, Garcia." Hotch ended the call, he wasn't trying to be rude to the analyst, but they needed to move fast.

When they finally made it to the church, it was very dark and raining. They had already called for backup, and Hotch and Matt entered through the front door while the rest of the team went around to the back. They slowly made their way inside, the hardly-illuminated church giving them a spooky feeling. Standing in front of the altar, Doyle was holding a gun to Emily's head. Hotch's body started shaking, and he started feeling dizzy; it was like he still couldn't assimilate Emily was alive like it was a dream, but she was standing there looking pale and very slim, yet, she didn't seem scared at all.

"Ian Doyle, FBI!" He shouted, "Drop your gun!"

Instinctively, Doyle turned around grabbing Emily and holding her against him, holding the gun against her head. Emily's heart started beating rapidly at the sight of the man she loved, he had come to find her, maybe he could forgive her after all.

"I knew it was just a matter of time before you came," Doyle said, looking at Emily.

"Let her go" Hotch shouted, all he wanted to do was pull her into his arms and keep her there for the rest of his life, it took all the courage possible not to launch and Doyle and take Emily from his arms, he knew he could kill her if he did that.

"Aaron..." Emily whispered weakly she needed to know if Violet was fine, she will never forgive herself if Doyle had done anything to her

Turning to Emily, he said, "It seems you betrayed me again, love." He said ironically.

"She didn't betray you," Cruz said, getting closer and pointing his gun at Doyle as well. "You aren't that hard to profile."

"Is that so, Agent Cruz?" He smirked pressing a kiss to Emily's hair, making her cringe in disgust

"Then, why did it take you almost a year to find me?" Doyle laughed,

"Wait, you found me earlier, but I escaped prison over six months ago...yet, you waited until she went missing to start looking for me?"

Hotch and Matt exchanged worried glances they needed a plan soon.

"You know what I don't understand, Ian? " Matt said, keeping eye contact so he could distract him until they could find a clear shot.

"What is that?" Doyle asked curiously

"You say you love Emily, but you're doing this." He pointed with his gun, "What kind of man points a gun to the head of the woman he loves?"

"The kind that loves." Dolled replied simply, holding her closer against him.

"See, Emily has done nothing but bring disappointment and pain to my life...you don't understand, you've never loved anyone."

"But I have." The Section Chief stated calmly walking closer to him keeping eye contact with Emily

"Have you forgotten that I used to love her too?" Hotch's eyes widened at the confession, not that this information was new to his ears; but, Matt was turning the conversation against him…this wasn't good, this would only anger Doyle and put Emily at a greater risk.

"Oh no, I haven't forgotten that," Doyle stated with anger in his voice, pressing the gun closer to her temple. Emily just closed her eyes, tired and wishing everything was over once and for all, as long as Violet was safe she didn't really care if he killed her or not.

"But see, Agent Cruz, that's the problem with Emily, her heart doesn't belong to anyone...not even you, or HIM," Doyle said angrily pointing at Hotch.

"No! See, she keeps making everyone believe this is a game, and she plays it so well…but, I know deep inside, she wants this to end."

"Is that what you think this is?" Cruz asked incredulously, "A game she is playing with you…the cat and mouse game? It's a hell of a game to play with someone even after a decade."

"I think what Emily doesn't understand is that she loves me," Doyle said watching them reproachfully "She doesn't understand who she is anymore... _she will always be Lauren_ , whether she likes it or no and see Agent Cruz Lauren is madly in love with me, but you have no idea what I am talking about..."

"Actually I do know what you are talking about," Matt said confidently all they needed was a small distraction, both guns were pointed at him, if he could get Doyle to turn his attention on him it will give Hotch enough time to take the shot and save Emily, _even if he had to die saving her._

"I created Lauren, have you forgotten about that? I know who she is and what she feels.. _.Lauren is mine._.." Emily started panicking as well, Cruz was antagonizing him and this wasn't gonna end well

"Matt" Hotch warned this wasn't good at all

"But _she loves me_ she is mine and she will always be mine," Clyde said venomously

"No, she is not" Hotch frightened look focused on Cruz, what the hell was he doing "What you don't understand is that she was mine first...even before you even met her" he had made his way closer to them slowly

"Matt no" Emily whimpered scared, she knew exactly what he was doing, he wanted to anger Doyle enough to turn his gun against him he was sacrificing her life for her

"I was her first man even when she was just a girl..." Doyle's eyes turned darker at the mention of Emily ever being with Cruz

"Matt stop" Hotch begged petrified

"and no matter what you do or what you say...I will always be her first love...and you cannot do anything about that"

"Then I guess I just have to kill you..." Doyle barked letting Emily go and turning his weapon on Cruz

"Nooooo" Emily screamed as she heard multiple shots being fired.

 _ **"Everything worthwhile in life requires an element of sacrifice."― Frank Sonnenberg**_


	21. Chapter 21

_**The Face of Love Chapter Twenty-One**_

"There is no denying that there is evil in this world but the light will always conquer the darkness." ― Idowu Koyenikan

"I created Lauren, have you forgotten about that? I know who she is and what she feels...Lauren is mine..." Emily started panicking as well, Cruz was antagonizing him and this wasn't gonna end well

"Matt" Hotch warned this wasn't good at all

"But she loves me she is mine and she will always be mine," Clyde said venomously

"No, she is not" Hotch frightened look focused on Cruz, what the hell was he doing "What you don't understand is that she was mine first...even before you even met her" he had made his way closer to them slowly

"Matt no" Emily whimpered scared, she knew exactly what he was doing, he wanted to anger Doyle enough to turn his gun against him he was sacrificing her life for her

"I was her first man even when she was just a girl..." Doyle's eyes turned darker at the mention of Emily ever being with Cruz

"Matt stop" Hotch begged petrified

"and no matter what you do or what you say...I will always be her first love...and you cannot do anything about that"

"Then I guess I just have to kill you..." Doyle barked letting Emily go and turning his weapon on Cruz

"Nooooo" Emily screamed as she heard multiple shots being fired

Everything happened so fast after that, Doyle's unexpected movement caused him to let go of Emily shoving her aside, this gave Hotch enough time to take a clear shot, his weapon firing twice. Matt was able to jump out of the way, but the bullet was able to hit him in the arm, Doyle collapsed on the floor, taking down Emily with him.

"Cruz?" Hotch asked his ears ringing; the faint remains of smoke and gun powder in the air

"I am okay" Cruz gasped holding his arm "Go to her" Hotch hesitated for a second as he watched blood zipping through the Section Chief's fingers.

"Doyle is death I need a medic, please Cruz is hurt" he called on his mic

"Go to her I am fine," Matt said again reading the hesitation in Hotch's eyes

Hotch ran towards Emily, keeping his gun out and aimed just in case; when he approached them he saw the two holes on his forehead, both of his bullets had reached their target. Doyle was finally dead, he fought the urge to empty his cartridge on the man that had caused so much pain to his family and him.

Carefully and as quickly as he could he placed his weapon back into the holster, then his attention was on Emily who seemed to be unconscious, he dropped into his knees, picking her up on his arms... this couldn't be happening she had to be fine.

"Emily..." he called desperately "Baby please..."

Her eyes open slowly and she blinked a few times before focusing on him, she was dizzy and she was sure she hit her head while falling. But he was there, he had found her.

"Aaron..." she chocked hardly able to make the words "Doyle...is he..."

"He is dead baby...is over..he is gone forever," Hotch said as his eyes filled with tears, he never would have thought he would be holding her again like this. A few months ago, when he had believed Emily was dead, his life had fallen apart. Now life was giving him a second chance to be with her, to make things right.

"Aaron I am sorry.." she cried as he wrapped her in his arms, they both had suffered so much for the last six months.

"You have nothing to be sorry for... I love you so much Emily" there was more to say but that was all she needed to hear right now, out of the corner of his eye he saw the rest of the team walking inside the church and helping Matt of the ground, paramedics already rushing to his side.

"Violet...where is...Violet..." Emily whispered, her mind finally beginning to clear.

"She is safe, she is with JJ, everything is fine" and just with those final words Emily finally broke down crying, everything that had happened in the last six months running through her mind like a movie.

Doyle threatening her and forcing her to divorce Aaron, the phone calls, Doyle coming close to Violet, him taking her into his cabin and raping her, their fight at the hangar when she was impaled, being in the hospital dead, _or pretending to be dead,_ hiding for weeks, and the Doyle telling her that had kidnapped Violet. It was all too much to bear and she just broke down crying, for months she had to keep all her emotions to herself, but her nightmare was over, Aaron had finally saved her and put a stop to her worst nightmare.

"I am so sorry Aaron" she sobbed holding him closer "I am sorry"

"Shhhh baby is okay," Hotch said kissing her head and losing the fight against his own tears.

"I am so proud of you...for everything you did to protect me and Violet...are you listening, I am so proud of you"

"Let's get you to a doctor okay? " he said gently picking her up and glancing one last time at Doyle's dead body.

He was dead, once again they had won their battle against evil, and it was all that matter now, of course, there were so many unresolved things. But right now all that he cared about was taking Emily to the hospital and getting his family back.

He slowly walked out of the church with Emily in his arms, there were officers everywhere, the swat team, and detectives already securing the scene. Dave approached them as he made his way towards one of the ambulances.

"Is she okay"

"She needs to see a doctor but she will be, okay," he said placing Emily down in the journey "Is Matt okay?"

"The bullet tore his arm pretty badly, he is losing a lot of blood...they are rushing him to the hospital now.."

"I want to go with him..." Emily said gaining enough strength and trying to step down from the gurney, after all, Matt almost sacrificed his life to save her.

"Honey you need to go to the hospital as well..."

"Please Aaron" she begged, "I need to go with him..."

"We are all going to the hospital, you will see him there..." he reasoned helping her back into the gurney

"Come on Gattina" Dave urged placing a hand in her arm "Let them take you, I will ride with Matt"

"Thanks, Dave"

Hotch helped the paramedic wheal the gurney into the ambulance and then he jumped in taking a seat next to Emily, painful memories coming back to his mind, not too long ago, he was riding in an ambulance just like that, only to find out later on that his wife was dead.

But she wasn't dead, she was here, right in front of him, looking beautiful _and just so perfectly Emily_ , she was slimmer and God only knew what she had been trough for the past few months. But she was here, she was alive and he couldn't bring himself to stop crying.

"Where is Violet..." she asked again, the only thing that had been going through her mind for the past few hours since Doyle had sent her that picture, was to save her daughter

"She is with JJ," he said leaning down to kiss her forehead. "She is okay..."

"Did he hurt her..." she needed to know; because she would never forgive herself if something happened to Violet

"No, she is fine, she strong just like her mommy..."

"I am sorry" she started crying again "I never meant to hurt Violet...this is all my fault and I am so sorry"

"Emily is not your fault..." he said caressing her face gently

"Yes it is...he went after my baby...he could have killed her" she could not even finish the sentence

"Shhh stop talking like that" he reprimanded softly

"Emily is over okay? He is gone, he can't hurt us anymore..." he was trying so hard to keep her calm but it wasn't working. Once the adrenaline from the shock went down, her brain was running a thousand miles per hour.

"Her blood pressure is rising..." the EMT told him "We need to keep her calm" he scolded as if it was Hotch the reason that she was getting upset.

"I know that and I am trying..." he glared at the younger guy.

"Emily baby please relax okay...? we are going to the hospital and everything is gonna be fine I promise you that..."

"I want to see Violet..."

"You will see her, I swear.. but right now you need to relax and let this young guy do his job..."

"I can give her a sedative..." the younger guy stated

"No, I don't want anything..." Emily said before Hotch was able to respond

"If would help to bring her pressure down" The guy added

"Em is not a bad idea..."

"Noo Aaron, I don't want it please..."

"Then just relax okay?" Hotch said caressing her cheek and wiping the tears away. "I promise you that you will see Violet as soon as we can..."

Emily closed her eyes taking a deep breath, one that she had been holding for almost six months now. From the minute Doyle appeared in her life, she had not been able to sleep, think, or even breathe. Then she had to leave her family behind to protect them, she would have never imagined a job she did ten years ago will affect her life forever. She was so lucky to be alive, so many times she didn't think she was gonna make it out alive, she truly didn't even know why Doyle hadn't killed her, all she could do was be thankful that everything was fine and this was finally over.

* * *

When they arrived at the hospital they took her in immediately, her blood pressure was high off the roof, and she was severely dehydrated and under extreme emotional stress. Hotch watched as the medics disappeared with her through the doors. Dave was already there waiting for him and the rest of the team.

"How is she doing?"

"I don't know..." he replied truthfully

"Everything is gonna be fine Aaron..." Dave said patting his back

"I still can even assimilate she is alive..."

"We should be thankful for that"

"I am Dave, I just... I spend two months crying over her death...my life just stopped, and all of a sudden..."

"It was hard, but they did whatever they had to do to keep her safe. I know your mad Aaron but you have to understand that this was about saving Emily"

"Where do we go from here..."

"You stay by her side help her get through this... you help your kids understand what happened to their mom" Hotch stood there looking at his best friend for just a second, how the hell was he supposed to tell his daughter that her mother was alive, that she didn't die.

How did you explain to a 5-year-old girl that her mother had returned from death?

"How is Violet supposed to understand this?"

"The only thing that she needs to understand is that her mother loves her more than anything in the world"

His phone started ringing and he reached into his pocket

"Yeah JJ"

"She is alive?" JJ asked he could hear the tears on the blonde's voice

"I am just as shocked as you are..."

"Oh my god" JJ covered her mouth "Is she okay? Is Doyle really gone"

"He is dead, I made sure of that"

"What do you need Aaron?" JJ asked wiping her eyes, there would be time for questions later, the only thing that mattered right now was that Doyle was gone and she was getting her sister back.

"Just be with Violet, please?"

"Do you want me to bring her over?"

"Not just yet..." he hesitated

"Aaron...she is her mother"

"I know that Jennifer...but how do I explain Violet her mother didn't die, she was at the funeral...this has been so hard on Violet already"

"I know," JJ said tears spilling again

"Look Violet is very smart and strong... she is Emily's daughter after all"

"I will tell her as soon as we know Emily is fine, I want to talk to Violet and Jack myself.."

"Of course I understand... look Will just got home he can stay with the kids, and I can to the hospital if you need me there"

" Thanks, JJ, how is Declan doing...?"

"He is scared and confused..."

"All right, look the minute the doctors give me an update on Emily I will go there..."

"Okay, just keep me posted please"

"Thank you, JJ..."

"Cruz is still on surgery" Dave informed him as soon as he hung up the phone.

"I should be there and not him..."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"He turned the heat on him," Hotch said tightly "He made Doyle shot him so we could get a clear shot without hurting Emily..."

"And that was his decision," Dave said calmly "Matt knew what he was doing, it might have been the only way out to save Emily..."

"He could be dead..."

"Aaron stop, if you want to end up like Gideon blaming yourself everything you go ahead. But that voice in your head is not your conscience is your ego " Dave said harshly

"You just got a second chance at life, you got the love of your life back, stop feeling sorry for yourself and figure out a way to help your family move on from here... right now Emily needs you more than ever..."

"I know that"

"So go be with her... Matt is gonna be okay.."

"Thanks, Dave..."

"Go see her, I will go check on the guys and Easter..."

* * *

Hotch walked inside Emily's room, she was laying that on the bed, with an oxygen wire around her nose; she was connected to several heart rate monitors, and there was an IV attached to her hand slowly dripping fluids into her system. Dave's words resonating inside his head, yo _u just got a second chance at life, you got the love of your life back,_ and it was true... just yesterday his life had no meaning, and now he was here again right next to her.

He stopped next to her carefully taking her hand and kissing it, tears already rolling out of his eyes. Her eyes open slowly focusing on him.

"How are you feeling sweetheart?"

"Dizzy..." she replied tiredly "And tired, um have you talk to the doctors?"

"They are gonna keep you over tonight, maybe tomorrow...depending on how the stress test comes out..." Emily nodded too tired to argue

"How is Matt?"

"He is still on surgery honey... but I will let you know as soon as he is out.."

"Aaron I need to see Violet, did you call for her...?"

"Not yet, sweetheart, I will call for her later"

"You are not gonna call her, are you?" Emily replied knowing his expressions fully.

"What?"

"You don't want me to see her" she said scared, _of course_ , he was hesitant to let her see their daughter after everything that happened

"Of course I do Emily..."

"Then why don't you want to call her?. I need to see her Aaron"

"I know baby" he replied calmly pulling a strand of hair behind her ear."I want you to see her too"

"Then what is it?"

"Em, Violet doesn't know that you are alive..."

"Oh..." she said frowning, "I thought Matt..."

"No, until just a few hours ago... I did not even know anything myself..."

"I am sorry Aaron" she could only imagine what it had been for him

"Is okay love?" he said kindly kissing her forehead "This is...look I love you and I am just glad you are here and fine..."

"I want to go home and talk to Jack and Violet and then I am gonna bring them over, I just don't want to scare them...they are still too little to understand"

"No, you are right...I don't want to scare them either, I just really want to hold Violet..."

"She has missed you so much..." he said his eyes filling with tears, and she began sobbing again,

"I am so sorry Aaron...I..."

"Shhh baby, is over okay?" he said wiping her eyes " We need to move on from here... Emily I am not mad at you, and neither are the kids...I just have to talk to them. "

"I love you, Aaron, more than anything in the world..."

"Oh baby I love you too" he pulled her into a hug "I always have and I always will..."

 _ **"Evil may be strong, but love-love breaks any curse, any spell-any sort of magic."― Chantal Gadoury**_


End file.
